Refuting all speculation, PKR deputy president Azmin Ali said he will remain with the party and will not betray the trust of those who elected him as MP for Gombak and Bukit Antarabangsa assemblyperson.

"Carry on dreaming, for I have no intention of resigning the duly elected position as deputy president.

NONE"Consequently and more significantly, I will not betray the trust of the people who five years ago elected me their MP and state assemblyperson," Azmin said.

He said speculation that he is after the post of Selangor MB is false, but claimed there was concern among the Selangor PKR leadership that the decision for the post had been decided without party consensus.

Azmin also said that most of the concern stemmed from the fact that the first-term Pakatan Rakyat Selangor administration had fallen short in serving the people.

However, he rejected claims that the unhappiness within the party was because Khalid had refused to support the divisions financially or through appointments within the state.


'We want humility in the CEO of the state'

"What we want in a CEO of a state is humility to listen to civil servants and the rakyat.

"We are not asking for contracts or tenders, no way... but RM2.6 billion in reserves is meaningless on paper when the problems on the ground are not solved," Azmin said.

The problems, he said, included the issues of land, water and bureaucracy, which have seen the business community waiting for years for approvals.

"The business community has been waiting two years for approvals. I expect a reformed government to do away with bureaucracy, while ensuring everything is transparent and above board," he said.

NONEAzmin also hit out at party de factoleader Anwar Ibrahim (right), whom he said did not resolve these issues despite being appointed Selangor economic adviser for this purpose.

"(When the issues were raised) Anwar wanted to sit down and discuss them, but I told him we have discussed this for many years," he added.

Azmin said that the criticism against Abdul Khalid's administration is shared by PKR leaders nationwide, and as far as Sabah.

"The Sabah PKR leadership is here to show support," he said.

Those present at the packed press conference include Teluk Kemang MP Kamarul Bahrin Abbas, Kuala Langat MP Abdullah Sani Abdul Hamid, Ampang MP Zuraida Kamaruddin, Batu Caves assemblyperson Amiruddin Shaari and Seri Muda assemblyperson Amiruddin Shaari.

The room at the PKR headquarters in Tropicana, Selangor was filled with grassroots supporters who applauded their leader and refused to leave to make room for media despite the organisers' pleas.-malaysiakini



Are we to rally every day, week and month...

PKR deputy president Azmin Ali today clarified that he had tweeted his disapproval of the Black 505 rally on Wednesday because he felt there were better ways to deal with electoral fraud.

NONEHe told reporters that instead of rallying, what Pakatan Rakyat needs to do is to collect information of fraud on all its polling and counting agents and work towards election petitions.

"I am not against the right to assemble, this is enshrined in the constitution... but are we to rally every day, week and month?

"We should start working, and not be politicking too much as the next election is a few years ahead," Azmin (left) said.

He, however, added that his notable absence at the mammoth rally at the Kelana Jaya stadium was not due to a protest, but because he had "meetings".

"I did not attend as I had meetings with colleagues on this matter (the appointment of the Selangor menteri besar)... but I will attend other rallies," he stressed.


He also defended his tweets, which have been reported on by several media outlets, saying that he only called for self-reflection.

“Was I wrong? I did not speak out without basis. I said we should accept the people’s decision and do self-reflection first,” he said.

He also said that unlike in Umno, it is acceptable in PKR for constructive criticism to be made against leaders.

“But I did not name the de facto leader (Anwar Ibrahim) or any leader,” he said.

NONEAzmin had prior to Wednesday’s rally, which attracted some 120,000 people, tweeted the following:

“Accept the people’s decision. Move on by caring for the rakyat for the sake of the nation’s prosperity, not by bullying them.

“The people are tired of over-politicking. Accept the punishment. Do self-reflection. Admit to faults. Move on. Concentrate on the rakyat and not just kin (kerabat).”

The speculation that something was amiss was first sparked by his tweets on Tuesday:

“Failure to reach Putrajaya, whose fault is it? Follow the explanations in the near future.

“The call for reform must start from the voice in your heart. Don’t drag the rakyat into it if we had failed ourselves.”-malaysiakini