The Kedah government’s move to allocate local councillor positions to an NGO set up by supporters of former PKR deputy president Azmin Ali has irked Kedah BN insiders.
According to an Umno source, the new Perikatan Nasional state administration has divided up the 193 local councillor posts with 60 going to PAS, 50 to BN, 48 to Bersatu and 35 to NGO Penggerak Komuniti Negara (PKN).
“This allocation appears extremely unfair and most Kedah Umno and BN leaders do not agree with this.
“PKN is not a part of PN. So why can they have 35 councillor positions?” asked the source on condition of anonymity.
“They (Umno and BN leaders) see this as a way to strengthen Azmin’s (above) camp in Kedah. Umno-BN is being increasingly marginalised under PN,” the Umno source claimed.
During the BN administration, MCA and MIC would typically be given 25 and 12 councillor positions respectively.
However, the two BN component parties received just five positions each this time while Umno was given the lion share of 40.
Kedah MCA chief Goh Chin Cheung confirmed the matter with Malaysiakini.
He said the distribution was decided in a meeting among PN state party chiefs.
“Yes, the 35 positions were given to PKN. But they are not in PN. We are still waiting to see the next development,” he said.
Kedah BN chief Jamil Khir Baharom declined Malaysiakini’s requests for comment.
PKN was set up earlier this year and appears to comprise both former and existing PKR members aligned to Azmin.
Azmin led an exodus from PKR in February and was a key architect of the “Sheraton Move” political coup that led to PN’s ascent to federal power.
The NGO’s youth wing - Pemuda Negara - is led by suspended PKR Seberang Jaya assemblyperson Dr Afif Bahardin.
Its women's wing is rumoured to be Nation of Women (NOW) - another NGO launched recently by suspended PKR Women chief Haniza Talha.
PKN has 'power' to demand posts - Kedah MB
When contacted, Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor (below) expressed that PKN has the “power” to demand positions as the NGO has two assemblypersons on its side.
He appeared to refer to PKN as a political entity.
“The decision on the matter was decided in a meeting between PN parties in Kedah - PAS, BN, Bersatu and ex-PKR.
“Ex-PKR can be regarded as NGO. They have the power to demand the posts as they have two state seats - Lunas and Sidam. That is the same number possessed by BN (in Sungai Tiang and Bandar Bharu),” Sanusi said.
However, he admitted to being absent from the PN meeting in question.
“I did not join the meeting where the discussion was held. The state government will accept whatever decision made as a result of discussions between the PN parties on local councillor nominations,” he added.
The Lunas and Sidam assemblypersons - Dr Robert Ling Kui Ee and Azman Nasrudin - played pivotal roles in the Kedah Pakatan Harapan government’s downfall.
Their defections on May 12 led to Harapan losing its slim majority and helped give PN the numbers to replace it.
The duo remained independent representatives who support PN.
As of now, the Kedah PN government has 23 seats in the 36-seat legislative assembly - 15 from PAS, four from Bersatu, two from BN and two independents. - Mkini
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