KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 10 — Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah said he was shocked when Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim was removed as state mentri besar during the 2014 leadership crisis
Calling the crisis the “most challenging” of political episodes in the state, Sultan Sharafuddin stressed that the reason why he did not accept Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail’s nomination as MB was because he did not want a leader who was a “puppet.”
“I could not believe what was happening especially to Khalid. He was so loyal and suddenly he was kicked out.
“Maybe there was a hidden agenda, maybe I am not a politician and that is the kind of thing I do not understand,” the Selangor Sultan said in an interview with The Star published today.
The “Kajang Move” was ostensibly engineered to enable PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to enter the Selangor legislative assembly and replace then-Selangor Mentri Besar Khalid.
But the plan fell apart when the Court of Appeal found Anwar guilty of sodomy, disqualifying the opposition leader from contesting the March 23, 2014 by-election.
His wife, Dr Wan Azizah, contested instead and won the by-election after PKR’s Lee Chin Cheh stepped down as Kajang assemblyman.
During the drawn-out crisis over the Selangor MB position, PKR had nominated party president Dr Wan Azizah to be Khalid’s replacement. PAS, however, nominated other names. The Selangor Sultan eventually settled on Datuk Seri Azmin Ali.
He pointed out that he had asked PKR to submit a few names but they originally submitted only one.
“That means they are twisting my arm. I have always asked for a few names from the previous government and they sometimes send up to three names, but they list their priority. What is the big deal that they cannot send more than one name?” Sultan Sharafuddin asked.
“The reason I did not accept Wan Azizah (Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail) is not because I think she is not qualified or that she is a woman.
“I have said it before — the Mentri Besar cannot be remote-controlled, he or she cannot be a puppet. You must have a strong character to do things for the rakyat,” he said.
