Khalid should quit now, no need for royal audience
COMMENTARY BY THE MALAYSIAN INSIDER
Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim called off a monthly meeting with Selangor civil servants in Shah Alam this morning – a regular affair for the Selangor menteri besar since taking office in 2008.
With good reason too. He has just lost PAS’s support for the top post. PAS has joined PKR and DAP to endorse Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail for the state’s top job.
Khalid has acknowledged the loss of support and said yesterday he would seek an audience with the state ruler to decide his fate.
Here’s the thing, the Sultan of Selangor only returns from holidays next week.
But why wait for the sultan to decide his fate? Why hide with palace protocol?
When a leader loses majority support as clearly as Khalid has done over the past few weeks, the honourable thing is to quit his job and let someone with the confidence of the majority take over.
After all, Khalid has sacked the PKR and DAP executive councillors in his state cabinet because they don’t support him. He now has to do the same for the PAS executive councillors.
That leaves him without the minimum of four state executive councillors to run the country’s wealthiest state. Support from the 12 Barisan Nasional (BN) state assemblymen is not enough.
All signs point to the fact that Khalid has lost his job. That he should go. He should inform the state ruler of that immediately and not wait to seek an audience.
Why should Selangor suffer a week or two more with a menteri besar in name but without any support?
Should the civil servants follow his directives because he still holds office until the Sultan lets him go?
