Kak Wan eyeing Azmin’s power base?
Selangor has long been Azmin’s power base and that has been the basis of his claim for the mentri besar post all these years. But he may have to fight off two powerful women to hold on to his base.
Joceline Tan, The Star
EVERYONE in PKR is on edge over Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy case on Oct 28. It will be do or die for the PKR big man because this will be his final appeal.
In fact, the political drama in Selangor the past nine months has been about this – the sodomy case.
Even the new line-up of PKR appointments unveiled on Monday is tailored around the impending outcome of the case. All of those appointed to key and important posts in the party are seen as people who will ensure that PKR continues to revolve around Anwar, regardless of whether he is found innocent or guilty.
They are also people who will help president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail control and run the party.
Those who got plum posts were the ones fighting for her to be the mentri besar. But since that did not happen, this group will now run the party as a parallel force against the group surrounding Selangor Mentri Besar Azmin Ali.
In other words, there are now two power centres in PKR – one revolves around Azmin and the other around the new secretary-general Rafizi Ramli.
These two factions will tussle for supremacy from now until the next party election, which will probably be even more intense than the recent one.
But the talk in Selangor is that Azmin is about to face another challenge to his leadership. Dr Wan Azizah is believed to be making a bid to replace Azmin as the Selangor PKR chairman.
Ampang MP Zuraidah Kamaruddin, who abandoned Azmin at the height of the mentri besar crisis, has been lobbying for the post. But she is unlikely to get it if Dr Wan Azizah wants it.
Selangor has long been Azmin’s power base and that has been the basis of his claim for the mentri besar post all these years. Grabbing the state leadership from Azmin will be akin to striking at his power base, or at the very least, diluting his hold over Selangor.
The party constitution stipulates that the appointment of a state chairman needs the input and consensus of the division leaders.
Azmin was Selangor’s choice in the contest for the deputy president’s post. He took home 45% of the votes in Selangor, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim won 39% and Datuk Saifuddin Nasution only 16%.
It is hard to tell whether the division chiefs will stay loyal to Azmin or sway to Dr Wan Azizah. Some division heads said that top vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar had approached them to lobby for her mother. It is said that up to 12 out 22 divisions have agreed to endorse Dr Wan Azizah for the state chairman post.
As mentri besar, Azmin can take care of their political interests but the party president can also insist on having her way as she has shown in the recent party appointments.
For instance, the party polls saw those aligned to Azmin making up 60% of the supreme council.
However, almost 90% of the appointments went to those aligned to Rafizi.
Saifuddin, who came in last in the deputy president contest, was appointed co-election director with Nurul Izzah and he is probably there to play nanny to the rising star.
The new strategy director, Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin, lost in the supreme council contest and his strategic skills remain a mystery to most people.
As the president, Dr Wan Azizah should have come up with a line-up that can mend and unite the splits in the party as well as inspire those outside the party. Instead, she gave the positions to only one side.
There has been so much commentary on Rafizi holding dual posts as vice-president and secretary-general given the disastrous Kajang Move.
It was quite astonishing that the man whose strategies almost caused Pakatan Rakyat to break up in Selangor has been rewarded with an even more powerful post.
Dr Wan Azizah is not known for being a hands-on president and it is likely that the Pandan MP will be the one calling the shots.
Rafizi’s controlling style was more than evident in an e-mail that he purportedly sent to Anwar and Youth chief Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, laying down a string of instructions aimed at undermining Azmin.
The e-mail demanded that Azmin must sign an undated letter to resign as mentri besar if he does not follow what the party says. It was also stated in the e-mail that the palace must be made aware that PKR regards the choice of Azmin to be unconstitutional.
There has been no denial to date from Rafizi about the e-mail and if the leak is authentic, it means that the new secretary-general has enemies in the party.
Rafizi has become a rather divisive figure in the party following his mastermind role to topple Khalid and then to block Azmin from the mentri besar post.
It means he is up against the majority in the party given Azmin’s big national victory as deputy president. Add to that the dislike that Khalid’s supporters have for Rafizi and gang and you have a rather alienating figure running the show in PKR.
Rafizi also has an image problem. Everyone still remembers how he told those who did not support Anwar and his family to leave the party.
But regardless of how people may feel about him, Rafizi is here to stay. And if Anwar does not win an innocent verdict, Rafizi will become the most powerful man in PKR.
