PAS Youth: Selangor MB post should be decided by Pakatan Supreme Council

KUALA LUMPUR: Matters concerning the Selangor Mentri Besar post should be discussed and decided by Pakatan Rakyat's Supreme Council, said PAS Youth chief Suhaizan Kayat.

He said Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim hinting that he would take up the post if he (Anwar) won in the upcoming Kajang by-election, was not right.

 "Anwar is not showing respect to the current mentri besar. Put yourself in (current) Mentri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim's shoes. How would you feel if suddenly someone comes around and says that he will soon be the mentri besar (replacing Abdul Khalid).

 "It is not nice, let Abdul Khalid continue to be the mentri besar, there is no need for anyone to say that he will be replacing him (Abdul Khalid) until the matter is discussed by Pakatan," he said when contacted by Bernama here Friday.

Pakatan Rakyat is an opposition pact made up of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), DAP and PAS.

Media reports Friday had quoted Anwar, who is also the de facto leader of PKR as saying that he might be appointed as the mentri besar of Selangor, replacing Khalid, if he won in the by-election.

The Kajang state seat became vacant following the sudden resignation of the incumbent, Lee Chin Cheh, also from PKR, on Jan 27. The party announced that Anwar, the MP for Permatang Pauh, would be their candidate for the seat the next day.

 "We will have to wait for the outcome of the by-election and if he (Anwar) wins, Pakatan Rakyat's Supreme Council will convene before making a decision.

He added that although PAS had strongly opposed Anwar taking over from Abdul Khalid, nevertheless the party would heed whatever decision was taken by PR's Supreme Council.

Meanwhile, PAS vice-president Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, when contacted, declined to comment on the reports.

"PAS does not want to think about who will be mentri besar. Our focus now is the Kajang by-election and if such a matter crops up, it best left to Pakatan Rakyat's Supreme Council to decide," he said.

In KAJANG, Gerakan president Datuk Mah Siew Keong said Anwar should tell Kajang voters if it was true that he would succeed Abdul Khalid as menteri besar, before polling day on March 23.

 "The people of Kajang have the right to know the truth. Anwar has just been making hints...he should stop beating around the bush," he told reporters after presenting Chinese New Year (CNY) ang pows and mandarin oranges to inmates at the Caring Old Folks Home Warga here.

He added that the people of Kajang also had the right to know if Anwar would serve them if he was elected and was not after his own selfish interests. - Bernama