Selangor MB Abdul Khalid mum over successor

As expected, Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim is keeping mum over his successor who is scheduled to be sworn in at the Istana Alam Shah in Klang on Tuesday.

He also declined to comment on the handover process of the highest post in the Selangor government.

"There is nothing ... we have agreed not to comment until Tuesday (swearing-in ceremony)," he told reporters after officiating at the Shah Alam City Ride organised by Tourism Selangor at Dataran Kemerdekaan here today.

Abdul Khalid also declined comment when asked about his plans after he steps down as the menteri besar.

"That too will be announced after Tuesday," he said.

The question of who will be Abdul Khalid's successor remains unanswered although the Selangor palace has confirmed that the swearing-in of the new menteri besar will be held on Tuesday.

The Sultan of Selangor's private secretary, Datuk Mohamad Munir Bani, was reported as saying on Friday that the name of the new menteri besar would be announced by Monday at the latest, depending on the consent of the sultan.

The names of Bukit Antarabangsa assemblyman Mohamad Azmin Ali of PKR and Cempaka assemblyman Iskandar Abdul Samad of PAS have been mentioned as the candidates to become the 15th menteri besar of Selangor.

Star newspaper reported today that Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah has consented to grant an audience to Mohamed Azmin, who is PKR deputy president; Iskandar, who is Selangor PAS commissioner and another Selangor state executive councillor from PAS and Sijangkang assemblyman Dr Ahmad Yunus Hairi separately earlier this week.

The daily said the meeting would allow His Royal Highness to evaluate their suitability in holding the post, and was one of the last steps towards determining who would be the best candidate to replace Abdul Khalid.

Meanwhile, an NGO called 'Jingga 13' has stated that Mohamed Azmin should not be nominated to be the new Selangor menteri besar as he did not have the trust and mandate of the party.

Its chief coordinator, Fariz Musa, said the crisis in the Selangor administration would prolong if any candidate other than PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail was appointed to the post.

"Jingga 13 supports Dr Wan Azizah as the candidate for menteri besar because she fulfills all requirements in the Laws of the Constitution of Selangor, which includes the majority support of 30 Selangor state assemblymen," he told a news conference here today.