Khalid Ibrahim's enemy within
Yong Kai PingPublished: Jan 25, 2010 5:24 AM | Updated: Jan 25, 2010 5:43 AM
news analysis The recent mass resignations that are said to have ‘crippled’ the Kuala Selangor PKR division led by Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim have come as no surprise to local members.
Many have felt that this has been a ticking time bomb, about to go off at any time.
news analysis The recent mass resignations that are said to have ‘crippled’ the Kuala Selangor PKR division led by Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim have come as no surprise to local members.
Many have felt that this has been a ticking time bomb, about to go off at any time.
Eleven of the division’s committee members, as well as the head of the Youth and Women’s wings, have resigned saying they have lost confidence in Khalid’s leadership.
The disgruntled members said the division has since been disbanded as it has been left with only three elected leaders, including Khalid.
Although speculation is rife that some influential party leaders were the hidden hands behind the resignations, local members said the cause of the revolt was unhappiness over the absence of allocation of resources.
Khalid (left) himself has dismissed any notion of a conspiracy behind the resignations.
Most of those who resigned were former Umno members who have been used to the patronage culture practised by Barisan Nasional while it was in power in Selangor.
Pakatan Rakyat’s surprise victory in the state in the 2008 general election and the appointment of Khalid as menteri besar had fuelled hope that the members of his division would be among the preferred in the allocation of state contracts and government posts.
They have even fought fiercely among themselves for the post of councillors in the state administration in order to assert influence over local councils and agencies.
However Khalid is known to run a tight ship when it comes to awarding state contracts and he smashed the expectations of many by refusing to entertain their demands.
Although a former Umno man himself, Khalid is said to have distanced himself from many of the division’s committee members. He has preferred to appoint aides who are deemed to be outsiders to manage the needs of constituents, thus earning criticism that he has forgotten his roots.
A local leader affirmed that the 13 who resigned are veterans who have been around since the days of Reformasi and who had been appointed to their committee posts before Khalid took over the reins.
“Before (the 2008 general election on) March 8, Kuala Selangor only had around 100 members, but most were reluctant to be appointed committee members. Whoever volunteered would be immediately appointed,” said the grassroots leader.
‘Fierce exchanges’
Khalid only parachuted into the Kuala Selangor division during the 2007 Ijok by-election - which he contested and lost - and was given the post of division head on a silver platter after the current deputy made way for him.
Considered one of the very few big guns willing to join PKR back in 2006 when the party was in the wilderness, Khalid quickly rose from treasurer to secretary-general before winning the Ijok state seat in the 2008 general election and being appointed MB.
Problems started to surface six months later. Party members who had attended previous division meetings were shocked at the extent of animosity displayed.
“Committee members quarrelled openly and accused Khalid of not taking care of those who had fought for the last 10 years, ever since the party’s inception. Some of them even used foul words,” said a member.
He gave a vivid description of the fierce exchanges, saying these sounded as if “they were going to tear down the door and the walls”.
The first fissures appeared when Khalid’s former special assistant, Yahya Saari, was put in cold storage due to allegations of graft.
One of the founders of the Kuala Selangor division and a former state liaison secretary, Yahya resigned from his party and government posts after Khalid’s move.
He fired back, demanding that Khalid gives up the state party chief’s post to de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim (right). Supporters protested Khalid’s ‘harsh treatment’ and lack of support for Yahya, who has always maintained his innocence.
He has claimed trial to two charges - of allegedly cheating a businessman of RM50, 000 for a Selangor Pakatan event and of allegedly falsifying documents to open a PKR account.
Yahya said he has the support of 70 percent of the division leaders in Selangor and that even Khalid’s aide in Ijok is his man. While tensions were defused after Anwar stepped in, the seeds of doubt have been sown among grassroots leaders.
Vote of no confidence
The second wave of dissatisfaction emerged last July after the state announced its list of councillors. The Kuala Selangor division’s committee members who had been overlooked delivered a vote of no confidence in Khalid.
PKR top leaders again stepped in to ‘take over’ the division. No meetings were held after that. But the disgruntled members made this an issue and accused Khalid of being autocratic, highlighting the fact he had not called a committee meeting for 14 months.
Khalid’s new aide in Ijok voted with the dissatisfied members and was replaced shortly afterwards.
Other state leaders have expressed support for Khalid by refuting the claim that the division has been dissolved. They said the head office has not received any letters of resignation.
They also questioned the status of those said to have resigned, as several have been identified as ordinary members rather than committee members.
As for Khalid, he seems to feel that enough is enough and has openly challenged troublesome members to leave for the party’s sake.
He said such crises are ‘normal’ to him and that it is better for members who are not in tune with the party to resign. If they do not, he explained, it will make the party difficult to manage.
Although Khalid is seen as honest man and is praised by many for not pandering to local warlords, some in the party feel that he should improve his public relations skills in order to rally grassroots support.
Many see his statement accusing disgruntled members of being influenced by Umno and urging the departure of those not in tune with the party, as only pouring more oil on the fire.
Many have felt that this has been a ticking time bomb, about to go off at any time.
Eleven of the division’s committee members, as well as the head of the Youth and Women’s wings, have resigned saying they have lost confidence in Khalid’s leadership.
The disgruntled members said the division has since been disbanded as it has been left with only three elected leaders, including Khalid.
Although speculation is rife that some influential party leaders were the hidden hands behind the resignations, local members said the cause of the revolt was unhappiness over the absence of allocation of resources.
Khalid (left) himself has dismissed any notion of a conspiracy behind the resignations.Most of those who resigned were former Umno members who have been used to the patronage culture practised by Barisan Nasional while it was in power in Selangor.
Pakatan Rakyat’s surprise victory in the state in the 2008 general election and the appointment of Khalid as menteri besar had fuelled hope that the members of his division would be among the preferred in the allocation of state contracts and government posts.
They have even fought fiercely among themselves for the post of councillors in the state administration in order to assert influence over local councils and agencies.
However Khalid is known to run a tight ship when it comes to awarding state contracts and he smashed the expectations of many by refusing to entertain their demands.
Although a former Umno man himself, Khalid is said to have distanced himself from many of the division’s committee members. He has preferred to appoint aides who are deemed to be outsiders to manage the needs of constituents, thus earning criticism that he has forgotten his roots.
A local leader affirmed that the 13 who resigned are veterans who have been around since the days of Reformasi and who had been appointed to their committee posts before Khalid took over the reins.
“Before (the 2008 general election on) March 8, Kuala Selangor only had around 100 members, but most were reluctant to be appointed committee members. Whoever volunteered would be immediately appointed,” said the grassroots leader.
‘Fierce exchanges’
Khalid only parachuted into the Kuala Selangor division during the 2007 Ijok by-election - which he contested and lost - and was given the post of division head on a silver platter after the current deputy made way for him.
Considered one of the very few big guns willing to join PKR back in 2006 when the party was in the wilderness, Khalid quickly rose from treasurer to secretary-general before winning the Ijok state seat in the 2008 general election and being appointed MB.Problems started to surface six months later. Party members who had attended previous division meetings were shocked at the extent of animosity displayed.
“Committee members quarrelled openly and accused Khalid of not taking care of those who had fought for the last 10 years, ever since the party’s inception. Some of them even used foul words,” said a member.
He gave a vivid description of the fierce exchanges, saying these sounded as if “they were going to tear down the door and the walls”.
The first fissures appeared when Khalid’s former special assistant, Yahya Saari, was put in cold storage due to allegations of graft.
One of the founders of the Kuala Selangor division and a former state liaison secretary, Yahya resigned from his party and government posts after Khalid’s move.
He fired back, demanding that Khalid gives up the state party chief’s post to de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim (right). Supporters protested Khalid’s ‘harsh treatment’ and lack of support for Yahya, who has always maintained his innocence.He has claimed trial to two charges - of allegedly cheating a businessman of RM50, 000 for a Selangor Pakatan event and of allegedly falsifying documents to open a PKR account.
Yahya said he has the support of 70 percent of the division leaders in Selangor and that even Khalid’s aide in Ijok is his man. While tensions were defused after Anwar stepped in, the seeds of doubt have been sown among grassroots leaders.
Vote of no confidence
The second wave of dissatisfaction emerged last July after the state announced its list of councillors. The Kuala Selangor division’s committee members who had been overlooked delivered a vote of no confidence in Khalid.
PKR top leaders again stepped in to ‘take over’ the division. No meetings were held after that. But the disgruntled members made this an issue and accused Khalid of being autocratic, highlighting the fact he had not called a committee meeting for 14 months.
Khalid’s new aide in Ijok voted with the dissatisfied members and was replaced shortly afterwards.
Other state leaders have expressed support for Khalid by refuting the claim that the division has been dissolved. They said the head office has not received any letters of resignation.They also questioned the status of those said to have resigned, as several have been identified as ordinary members rather than committee members.
As for Khalid, he seems to feel that enough is enough and has openly challenged troublesome members to leave for the party’s sake.
He said such crises are ‘normal’ to him and that it is better for members who are not in tune with the party to resign. If they do not, he explained, it will make the party difficult to manage.
Although Khalid is seen as honest man and is praised by many for not pandering to local warlords, some in the party feel that he should improve his public relations skills in order to rally grassroots support.
Many see his statement accusing disgruntled members of being influenced by Umno and urging the departure of those not in tune with the party, as only pouring more oil on the fire.
View Comments0