Despite PKNS axing, Azmin says no beef with Khalid
Azmin stressed the importance of teamwork in the administration of a state and said no leader should make unilateral decisions.
By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal, The Malay Mail
Azmin Ali has dismissed talk of a worsening rift between himself and Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, saying his only concern is on improving Pakatan Rakyat’s (PR) performance in Selangor.
Breaking his silence for the first time since his controversial axing from the board of the Selangor State Economic Development (PKNS), the PKR deputy president told an interview with The Malay Mail Online that his main priority as a senior party leader and state assemblyman is the welfare and the policies of the state government, and not “personal rivalries”.
Azmin, now in the centre of the storm over his PKNS removal, stressed the importance of teamwork in the administration of a state and said no leader should make unilateral decisions.
“We need a strong team, and that is not Tan Sri Khalid alone,” he said.
“No one can act unilaterally in Pakatan Rakyat, it is through teamwork and consultations that makes us work effectively together,” he added, when asked whether he was satisfied with how the Selangor government is performing in its second term of office.
“A big part of politics is perception, yes. I am aware of the perception with regards to this issue. But what I am concerned with right now is improving our performance in Selangor, doing better than our first term,” he stressed, adding that every leader within the opposition bloc should be subject to scrutiny and “constructive” criticism.
“We can blame Umno… like the last time around, but this is our second term. There is only one way to move forward, and to do that we need a clear mechanism,” the PKR deputy president said in the telephone interview.
Such a mechanism, according to Azmin, would mean that the Selangor government should actively consult stakeholders – the public as well as the PR leadership – from time to time before they decide or debate any policy within the state legislative assembly.
He said this was pivotal to avoid future miscommunication or “perceptions” of internal conflict.
“We can achieve this, provided the team works as a team. Communication is the key here; without it we cannot move forward and there will be possible implications,” said the Bukit Antarabangsa state assemblyman.
He pointed out that PR had recaptured Selangor in the last general election with a bigger mandate, winning 44 out of 56 state seats, and therefore could not afford to jeopardise the “second chance” given to them by voters.
“I hold no ill-will towards anyone. Politics is politics but work is work, and at the end of the day, we are elected to do work, so we should just get to it,” he said, when asked whether he was upset in how Khalid had handled the issue of his position within PKNS.
“I just want to move forward,” Azmin said.
He had reportedly received a letter from the PKNS on January 10, informing him that his tenure on the board of the state government firm would not be renewed.
Selangor Mentri Besar Khalid said last Wednesday that it was the PKNS general manager, Othman Omar, who had terminated Azmin’s position on the board, and not the Selangor state executive council.
But PKNS refuted Khalid’s claim the following day and said that the Selangor state executive council had decided on Azmin’s removal last year.
Opposition Leader and PKR de facto chief Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim then intervened and told a news conference that Azmin was still a PKNS board member.
Khalid said in response that he would “consider” reinstating Azmin’s position, but noted that an immediate restoration is prohibited by the PKNS Enactment, and reiterated this position yesterday following a meeting with PKNS.
Yesterday, Khalid had also denied media reports that Azmin had been reinstated to the PKNS board, saying the lawmaker remains axed pending an investigation into the matter.
