SHAH ALAM: PKR’s three-day 10th Congress started yesterday, with discussion on the Selangor leadership crisis taking centre stage at the meetings of its women and youth wings.
Opening the party’s women wing meeting at the Malawati Stadium here, vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar defended the party leadership’s decision to nominate her mother, party president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, as the new Selangor menteri besar, replacing Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim.
Nurul Izzah hit out at those who cited religious reasons for opposing the appointment of women as leaders.
“We are wondering why there are still many in our society who regarded the appointment of a woman as leader being a taboo. This is especially so among those who used religious arguments to hinder women from being leaders.”
The opposition pact had nominated Dr Wan Azizah to replace Khalid, but the move triggered a crisis when the two-term Khalid, who initially had the support of the Pas’ Ulama faction, refused to resign.
One of the known reasons cited by Pas leaders for refusing to support Khalid’s ouster was their reservations about a woman being the MB. Khalid was sacked from PKR on Aug 9. Pas then made a U-turn by retracting their support for Khalid and instead, endorsed the nomination for Dr Wan Azizah.
PKR deputy president Azmin Ali, who simultaneously opened the party’s youth wing meeting, made an indirect reference to the protracted impasse, saying that the party may have made some wrong decisions in dealing with the Selangor leadership crisis.
“Mistakes have been made but we should take it as an experience in order for us to make right decisions when dealing with other crises in future.”
In an apparent jibe at Khalid, who is known to be his bitter rival within PKR before being sacked, Azmin said leaders should act in line with the party’s decisions.
“Leaders have to accept the party’s decisions. Even leaders need to be loyal to the party, and not just its members.”
PKR Wanita chief Zuraida Kamaruddin, in her winding-up speech at the end of the movement’s meeting, insisted that Dr Wan Azizah should automatically be appointed as MB and that there should not be any snap state election to resolve the state leadership crisis. She described any initiative to have such an election as “an act of nonsense and against the constitution”.