Azmin Ali: speaking up or damage control?
The only revelation he made about the Permatang Pauh by-election in 2008 was that Anwar had whispered to him to be ready to take over as Selangor MB as at that time, party leadership was disappointed with Tan Sri Abdul Khalid’s performance.
(Malaysian Digest) – Did Azmin really ‘speak up’ or did an overnight damage control take place?
Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) deputy president Azmin Ali yesterday told the press that the time has come for him to speak up and reveal what transpired in the Permatang Pauh by-election in 2008 after incumbent Datuk Seri Wan Azizah, PKR President stepped down to make way for her husband Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to contest.
Anwar won the seat by a 15,671 majority over Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Arif Shah Omar Shah.
Azmin announced yesterday that he will hold a press conference today to make his revelation.
However, today, at a press conference in PKR headquarters which was delayed for an hour from its initial start time, Azmin continued to be vague.
He did quash rumors of him resigning from his post in the party saying that he is still PKR’s deputy president.
In the past few days, rumors have been rife about Azmin stepping down.
Azmin himself, via his Twitter account sent cryptic tweets which hinted a dissatisfaction with PKR and Anwar.
The following are Azmin Ali’s tweets in the past few days:
@AzminAli Gagal ke Putrajaya? Salah siapa? Ikuti penjelasan dalam masa terdekat. #fb
@AzminAli Laungan reformasi harus bermula dengan bisikan dalam hati sendiri. Jangan heret rakyat kalau kita sendiri gagal! #fb
@AzminAli Terima keputusan rakyat. Maju ke hadapan dengan dasar peduli rakyat bukan membuli rakyat demi kesejahteraan dan kemakmuran negara. #fb
@AzminAli Rakyat letih dengan asakan politik melampau. Terima hukuman. Muhasabah diri. Akui kelemahan. Maju kehadapan. Tumpu rakyat bukan kerabat. #fb
Utusan Malaysia yesterday carried out a piece saying that Azmin is hitting out at Anwar based on his tweets and the fact that Azmin was not present at Wednesday’s ‘Suara Keramat Suara Rakyat’ rally in Kelana Jaya.
Most of the hints that Azmin gave out to the press yesterday was sugar-coated and downplayed in his press conference today.
The PC which was initially scheduled to be held at De Palma Hotel in Ampang was then changed to PKR Headquarters.
That in itself was already an indication that Azmin was not going to reveal anything major today.
Another point that should be raised is that if Azmin truly wanted to reveal something big, he could have done so yesterday, without dangling the carrot and leaving it hanging overnight, which leaves the public wondering could he be buying time for negotiations.
Azmin earlier hinted that he has been faced with rumors for 15 years and it was high-time he spoke out, reiterating that he is not a Yes-man.
The deputy president who appeared to have been disappointed based on his tweets suddenly is playing by the book, revealing nothing new in today’s PC.
The only revelation he made about the Permatang Pauh by-election in 2008 was that Anwar had whispered to him to be ready to take over as Selangor MB as at that time, party leadership was disappointed with Tan Sri Abdul Khalid’s performance.
Azmin also placed an emphasis on nepotism, insisting that a leader has to be picked based on merit and not individuality.
Azmin insisted that the rumors of him wanting the post of Selangor Menteri Besar is something that has been created by Umno and BN.
“The issue here is not about Azmin Ali becoming Selangor MB, but rather the process of selection must be based on consultation and not
nepotisme,” he told the press.
He reiterated the fact that he is working for Anwar, someone he believes has the integrity and qualification to become a Prime Minister.
He maintained that he will not leave PKR and will continue to fight for the rakyat.
A PKR deepthroat told Malaysian Digest that the party’s Selangor leadership council is in agreement for Azmin to become the next MB of
Selangor however Wan Azizah refuses to sign off on it.
This is in reference to Wan Azizah and her daughter Nurul Izzah Anwar and Azmin rumored to be on separate camps in PKR, with the formers favoring Abdul Khalid to continue his reign as the MB of Selangor.
It is now very glaring that Azmin mentioned nepotism twice, yesterday and today, making it obvious that his intention is to highlight Khalid’s appointment as MB as not being based on merit.
Azmin also told the press that he held a meeting with PKR’s Selangor leadership council yesterday to hear the grievances from top leadership and grassroot members.
“I have been urged to share information to ensure the party remains on the right course,” he said.
A staunch PKR supporter who only wants to be known as Rizal, told MD that Azmin should stop behaving like a child for not getting the MB post.
“He has to show that he means it when shouting ‘Ubah’ (change). Azmin should ‘ubah’ himself first because now it is clear that he is just in it for the position. He has to reveal fully what happened in that negotiation he had with the council. Did he threaten to jump or reveal
something about Anwar? Or was he holding the party at ransom for personal gain? Azmin should put the rakyat above self preservation,” he said.
However, Rizal pointed out that it serves as a venerable mention that Azmin managed to tell his bosses off, albeit very subtly.
“Whether he did it for a position or because he really cared, who knows. But kudos for that, I’d like to see more people stand up against what is wrong,” he added.
Meanwhile, Azmin, when commenting on Anwar’s call for a rally to protest the results of the 13th general election (GE13), said that he supports rallies if he believes there is a need for it.
However in the case of Wednesday’s rally, he believes that now is not the time to drag the rakyat onto the streets, instead the party leadership should focus its efforts on proving to the Election Commission (EC) that there were fraudulent practices in last Sunday’s election.
“We need to gather every complaint on cheating and phantom voters and produce a credible report to the EC,” Azmin told the media yesterday.
Azmin should be commended for making indications of accepting the results of GE13 along with PKR’s counterparts, PAS and DAP.
What is left hanging in the balance however is the issue of ‘nepotism’ that Azmin has left weighing heavily on the minds of PKR supporters and the people of Selangor at large.
