KUALA LUMPUR, March 6 — Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu)’s Selat Klang assemblyman Datuk Abdul Rashid Asari today declared his support for the leadership of Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari.
In a statement, Abdul Rashid affirmed his backing for Amirudin’s leadership was voluntary and devoid of any external pressure.
“This decision was made voluntarily without any form of compulsion, after examining the speech by the Selangor Sultan who praised the administration of the Selangor state government for being on the right track for the progress of the state and the well-being of the people.
“I also took this decision to ensure the well-being of the Selangor people, especially the residents in Selat Klang who will benefit from a stable and cohesive government,” he said.
He also expressed concern over the perceived silence of Perikatan Nasional (PN) in addressing accusations against the Malay Rulers.
“This step was also due to PN’s, particularly Selangor PN’s ‘silence’ on accusations thrown against the Malay rulers. This is against the principles of Malay Muslims,” he added.
Abdul Rashid, who was first elected as Selat Klang assemblyman in 2018 under the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition, defended his seat in the last state election with a substantial majority of 42, 703 votes.
Recently, he was replaced by Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali as the Selangor Bersatu chief.
On March 2, Bersatu successfully amended the party's constitution to prevent its representatives from defecting in the future.
The decision was made in an extraordinary general meeting, where party representatives unanimously supported the motion to amend Article 10 of the Bersatu constitution.
The article stipulates matters related to the resignation and dismissal of party members.
In January, Labuan MP Datuk Suhaili Abdul Rahman challenged the party to sack all its MPs who expressed support for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Suhaili, suspended for six years effective last November by Bersatu, was one of the party’s six MPs who openly supported Anwar because it would make it easier for them to get help for the people in their constituencies.
The other five Bersatu MPs who expressed their support for Anwar were Datuk Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal, Zahari Kechik (Jeli), Mohd Azizi Abu Naim (Gua Musang), Datuk Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Kuala Kangsar) and Datuk Zulkafperi Hanafi (Tanjong Karang).
