Again, PKR leaves Khalid’s future as MB open to speculation
Syed Jaymal Zahiid, TMI
PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail has refused to confirm if the party would keep Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim as Selangor mentri besar should Pakatan Rakyat (PR) retains Selangor in Election 2013, further fuelling speculation that he may be axed from the post.
When asked on the matter, Dr Wan Azizah said there are other capable leaders suitable for the post and the candidacy is not an issue as long as the coalition implements good governance in the country’s industrial capital.
“We have a few capable leaders, now as many as Barisan Nasional, so crowded, but Khalid is one of them because he has a track record, doesn’t matter as long as the right policies are there,” she told reporters at the party’s headquarters here.
Asked if that means Khalid will likely be dropped, Dr Wan Azizah refused to comment but said the former could still be the mentri besar.
“There is a probability that he will be MB but like I said there are other capable leaders,” she said.
The Malaysian Insider had previoulsy reported that uncertainty hangs over Abdul Khalid’s political future in Selangor as sources in PR have indicated that the interim mentri besar could lose his post even if the pact retains the state in Election 2013.
The PKR leadership has so far refrained from confirming if Khalid (picture) would be selected to defend his seat, in light of growing anger among locals who purportedly view the politician as an “absent” representative.
The Malaysian Insider understands the party leadership had also, at one point, considered dropping Khalid as its Ijok candidate following concerns that the mentri besar could lose the seat.
Talks that Khalid would be dropped first surfaced when PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced in October last year that the former would remain as PKR’s Bandar Tun Razak parliamentary candidate but did not state if Khalid (picture) would defend Ijok.
