Selangor Pakatan needs 2/3 majority to amend laws

Selangor Pakatan Rakyat leaders acknowledged that they might fail to amend the state constitution and return the right of appointment of the state secretary, legal adviser and financial officer to the Sultan and the state government.

"Yes, we do need to muster two-thirds majority," Selangor executive councilor Xavier Jayakumar told Malaysia Chronicle. "It won't be easy but we will fight all the way. Also very important to us is to debate the issue in our state assembly."

Pakatan controls 35 of the state assembly's 56 seats and will need 38 seats to push through the amendments. However, Jayakumar said it was possible for Pakatan to devise other means, including locking out Khusrin from his office, that could effectively nullify his presence if the federal government refused to back off.

State laws changed in 1993 to favor federal government

Mentri Besar Khalid Ibrahim had announced that he would table an emergency sitting of the legislative assembly to protest the federal government's appointment of Khusrin Munawi, an Umno leaders and the former director of the state religious department JAIS, to the post of State Secretary.

Not only are Pakatan leaders wary of Khusrin because of his track record of bending the rules to favor his party, but senior members of the Selangor civil service have also voice their unhappiness. They see Khusrin's appointment as "unfair" and "biased" because he was just a Grade C officer and had to be catapulted into Grade A to fit the new post. They have questioned why others with more qualifications and experience were not chosen.

Amid speculation that Khusrin was put in place by Prime Minister Najib Razak to help Umno regain control of Selangor through the use of Rela volunteers as phantom voters in the 13th General Election, or to co-ordinate unrest in the state to pave the way for the federal government to declare emergency rule, Khalid has refused to allow Khusrin to be sworn in or to attend any state assembly or executive councilors' meeting.

"The state will suggest to the Speaker to hold an emergency state assembly sitting to amend the state constitution to return the power of appointment of the state secretary, financial officer and legal adviser to the Sultan and the mentri besar (chief minister),” said Khalid.

"This is because the laws were amended in 1993 during a constitutional crisis. The state laws were changed and centralized to reinforce the federal government’s hold on the state."

Section 52 of the Selangor State Constitution states:

(1) There shall be constituted the offices of State Secretary, State Legal Adviser and State Financial Officer; and the appointments thereto shall be made by the appropriate Service Commission from amongst members of any of the relevant public services.

(2) (a) The State Secretary who shall be of the Malay race and profess the Muslim Religion, shall be the principal officer in charge of the administrative affairs of the State.

(b) The State Legal Adviser shall advice on legal matters referred to him by His Highness or the State Government.

(c) The State Financial Officer shall be the principal officer in charge of the financial affairs of the State.

(3) Every such official shall have the right to take part in the proceedings of the State Executive Council and the Legislative Assembly and may be appointed to any Committee thereof, but shall not have any vote in the State Executive Council or the Legislative Assembly or any such Committee.
(4) Before any such official first attends a meeting of the State Executive Council, he shall take and subscribe in the presence of the Menteri Besar the following Oath of Secrecy:

Oath of Secrecy:

"I ……………………… do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will not directly or indirectly communicate or reveal to any person any matter which shall be brought under my consideration or shall become known to me in the course of my attending the State Executive Council except as may be required for the due discharge of my duties as such or as may be specially permitted by the State Executive Council”. - Malaysia Chronicle