Has Khalid overstayed his welcome as Selangor MB?

By admin-s On Apr 21, 2014

(The Ant Daily) – However, the idea of having him replaced by Selangor PKR chief Azmin Ali was not viewed favourably by DAP and PAS.

Something is brewing in Selangor Pakatan Rakyat and it bodes ill for Menteri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim.

The Selangor DAP assemblymen who had been Khalid’s strongest supporters after the 13th general election are now publicly reprimanding him for his lack of political will to resolve issues in Selangor.

The second-term menteri besar may thus see the exit door sooner than he thinks.

This shifting of alliances could not be more apparent with the statements made by Selangor DAP chairman and Petaling Jaya MP Tony Pua and deputy chairman and Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo on Khalid’s supposed lack of gumption to tackle sensitive issues afflicting the state.

The state DAP leadership had refrained from making any public criticism of the state administration following the controversial raid on the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) premises by the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) on Jan 2.

But when BSM announced that it would be moving from Selangor to Kuala Lumpur, seemingly for better protection of minority faiths, Pua was forced to take Khalid to task for a lack of appropriate response to the news.

“Since the January raid and seizure of Bibles conducted by Jais, which reports to the Selangor Religious Council (Mais) headed by the Sultan, the state government had issued various vague promises to help resolve the crisis. There was, however, a distinct lack of urgency or pro-active responses to deliver an acceptable solution for all parties, or at the very least, defend the rights of the victims.

“BSM’s decision to move thus embarrassed not only the state government but also Pakatan and our ability and sincerity to uphold the rights of minorities in a multi-cultural, multi-racial and multi-religious Selangor and Malaysia,” Pua said in a press statement.

Gobind also said Khalid must be fully responsible for the state’s failure to resolve Jais’ illegal raid and seizure. “He cannot push all the responsibility to the federal government.”

“The menteri besar has displayed a total lack of interest and political will in handling the issue and this has resulted in a serious loss of faith of not only the Christians but other Malaysians in his leadership in Selangor.

“It goes without saying that incidents like these demonstrate Khalid’s inability to understand and solve problems that need political courage and strength, and that begs the question as to whether or not he is politically fit and able enough to continue as Selangor MB,” Gobind said in a press statement.