Khalid-Azmin feud at breaking point
BY JOCELINE TAN
Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim (left) and Azmin Ali.
Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim’s killer instinct was on display when he axed his rival Azmin Ali from the prestigious board of the Selangor Development Corporation.
A black Honda CRV now sitting in Selangor’s PKNS compound may be a clue to the removal of PKR deputy president Azmin Ali from the PKNS board of directors.
Azmin had returned the official car about two hours after he received a letter from Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim informing him that he was no longer a board member of PKNS or the Selangor Development Corporation.
Azmin did not wish to hold on to the four-year-old vehicle a minute longer than necessary.
Especially given the insider talk that the Mentri Besar, who is PKNS chairman, had used the car as one of the reasons for axing Azmin from the board.
This is the second time that Azmin has returned the car in the past one year. The Gombak MP and Bukit Antarabangsa assemblyman had done the same thing during the general election.
On the day the Selangor Legislative Assembly was dissolved, Azmin promptly returned the car to PKNS.
Apparently, he wanted to make the point that a caretaker government should not continue to use state facilities.
The car was only sent back to him in August after the state legal adviser confirmed that he was still on the board.
Azmin’s tenure was good until 2015 but insiders said at a meeting in November, the Mentri Besar decided to drop Azmin because he had “returned all his perks” as a board member, referring to the general election episode.
The flimsy reason has been the talk of PKR circles since the news leaked.
The decision was also said to have been made without consultation with the party.
Such appointments are usually done based on proposals from the respective parties.
Besides, Azmin is more than just a board member.
He is the PKNS board’s working committee chairman, making him second-in-command to board chairman Khalid.
During Azmin’s tenure, PKNS had achieved zero debt in 2012 and accumulated in excess of RM380mil in cash.
In 2011, it registered the highest pre-tax profit of RM422mil in PKNS history.
It has also balanced its profit making with allocations for affordable housing, infrastructure projects and schemes for the poor.
Khalid retained PAS’ Iskandar Samad on the board whereas DAP’s Datuk Teng Chang Khim replaced Teresa Kok because she is no longer a Selangor assemblyman.
The speculation is that he intends to appoint his former political secretary Faekah Husin in place of Azmin.
Faekah is already the CEO of MBI or the Mentri Besar Incorporated which controls a lot of funds in the state.
The pint-sized but tough-talking lady is utterly loyal to him and can be trusted to look out for his political interest.
PKNS is one of the richest state development corporations in the country because of its land bank, built-up assets and the fast paced growth in the state.
Sitting on the board carries a lot of prestige and clout and such posts are part of what one might call the spoils of war.
Khalid had decided that he was not going to give it to his nemesis. And who can blame him? Azmin has been a thorn in his side from the day that Pakatan took over Selangor and his rival for the Mentri Besar post.
“Tan Sri Khalid is playing corporate politics,” said a PKR youth leader.
Some see the PKNS move as Khalid putting Azmin in his place.
Azmin may be the deputy president and Selangor chair of PKR, but Khalid is the Mentri Besar and he wields the power in the state.
Moreover, he knows that he has the support of the component parties and a good public image.
The axe falling on Azmin may also have to do with the way Azmin had spoken out against the recent over-the-top pay hikes to state elected representatives especially the Mentri Besar and State Speaker.
Khalid was said to be furious with the way Azmin did it.
He thought it was his rival’s way of embarrassing him and undermining his image.
But some are reading Khalid’s action in a bigger way given that the PKR election is scheduled for March.
They think this is a pre-emptive strike and that Khalid may be going for the post of deputy president.
Khalid managed to hang on to his Mentri Besar post after May 5 thanks to the push from his party president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
She had lobbied hard for him because she did not want Azmin up there.
But Dr Azizah’s own situation is unclear now with talk that she may be pressured to step aside.
The party is now into the big time, it is on a roll and it needs a president who plays a real role in leading the party and taking on the Barisan Nasional.
She may not be around much longer to stand up for him.
Khalid would be better able to secure his Mentri Besar post if he holds a party position.
He has never contested a post in the party but there is a first time for everything and everyone.
If he wins the No. 2 post, he is assured of staying in the top job.
If he loses, it is back to square one, no big loss.
Khalid is still an enigma after so many years in politics.
He is hard to read because he does not talk a lot. Even when he is in a talkative mood, it is hard to pin him down to a point, much less his political ambition.
What is clear is that his rivalry with Azmin has reached a point of no return.
source : the star
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