All the cards are now in PAS's hands - will the Islamist party do good by the people who voted in Pakatan in Selangor or will they single-handedly deliver the state back to Umno?
COMMENT
By P Ramakrishnan
It is unimaginable that one man can cause so much chaos and frustration to the democratic process yet that is what Selangor Menteri Besar (MB) Khalid Ibrahim has done.
He has simply ignored a time-honoured democratic tradition by stubbornly refusing to resign when it has become all too clear he no longer commands the support of the majority of those in the Selangor State Assembly.
To top it off, he has sacked the majority of his Exco members, all of whom are from DAP and PKR. Whether he has the authority to do so is questionable, but from the looks of it he is not bothered.
By sacking them, Khalid has ensured there is no longer a Pakatan government in Selangor.
This vile plot seems to pave the way for the return of Umno/Barisan Nasional (BN) rule in Selangor in defiance of the voters, who gave Pakatan the mandate to govern them in the last two general elections.
The next logical step would be to appoint Umno assembly members as Excos and increase the number of PAS Excos.
The question now is whether PAS will go along with this move and effectively reverse the outcome of the 13th general election, which denied BN the right to rule Selangor.
If PAS does play along with Khalid and allows Umno in, PAS will then be abandoning its Islamic credentials while delivering a blow to the Pakatan government, which will no longer be intact.
This in turn would be a terrible betrayal of the faith and trust voters gave Pakatan in Selangor.
Will PAS contribute to this injustice by sharing power with a previously hated enemy?
Without the support of PAS, there isn’t a ghost of a chance for Umno to return. It is only with the tacit support of PAS that Umno can once again be part of the new Selangor government being hatched by Khalid.
PAS has to decide – and decide immediately – whether it wants to play a part in this nefarious plot.
If not, it must instruct its four Exco members to cease cooperation with Khalid as failing to do so perpetuates a wrong that deserves to be condemned.
This is the only way to kill Khalid’s plot to topple the democratically elected Pakatan government.
Will PAS stand on the side of one man who doesn’t deserve to be MB or will PAS stand up for those who voted in PAS, DAP and PKR?
All those who contributed to this change worked tirelessly, took risks and sacrificed time and money to bring about its success.
PAS must speak up now in defence of justice.
It is said, “A time comes when silence is betrayal.”
P Ramakrishnan is executive committee member and former president of Aliran.
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