“I WAS commanded by His Royal Highness The Sultan of Selangor to offer an explanation, denying the statement made by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in local newspapers that the convention of submitting one name for the menteri besar post has been practised since the country achieved its independence in 1957.
Anwar’s statement is inaccurate and confusing to the public. When Barisan Nasional administered the state, the selection of menteri besar was presented to His Royal Highness by the prime minister through an audience with the sultan. In this ceremony, the prime minister would present the names of several candidates deemed suitable to receive the consent of the sultan. From this list of names, His Royal Highness would pick only one candidate as the new menteri besar.
However, in 2008, the election results did not favour Barisan Nasional. The opposition parties, namely Pas, PKR, and DAP, had combined to form Pakatan Rakyat (a coalition government) in order to obtain the majority to rule the state.
At that time, His Royal Highness had decreed the leaders of all three parties to discuss the list of candidates for the post of menteri besar. A few candidates were recommended from those discussions.
His Royal Highness, through his private secretary, then issued a letter to the leader of each component party within Pakatan to nominate two names for the post. Following that, the party leaders unanimously decided to nominate Tan Sri (Abdul) Khalid Ibrahim as the new menteri besar.
As Khalid had fulfilled all the criteria to become menteri besar and met the conditions under the 1959 Selangor constitution, the sultan consented to his appointment as menteri besar.
In 2013, Pakatan won the majority of state seats in Selangor. As such, the menteri besar would be chosen from among the state assemblyman in Pakatan. PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail had made a statement during the 13th General Election campaign that Khalid would not necessarily remain as menteri besar if Pakatan emerged victorious.
As a result, His Royal Highness, through his private secretary, wrote to the heads of parties in Pakatan, asking them to nominate four candidates for the menteri besar post. However, all three parties wrote back to the sultan recommending that Khalid be retained as the menteri besar.
Apart from that, His Royal Highness also received the name of another candidate for the post. Since Khalid was already the existing menteri besar and had a good relationship with the palace and the people of Selangor, the sultan consented to reappointing him as menteri besar.
It is the policy of the palace not to reveal the names and information of the nominated candidates, or of the menteri besar selection process. However, since present circumstances have forced the palace to issue a statement, this matter needed to be explained. As such, if Anwar does not possess accurate facts, he is advised not to issue statements which can confuse the public and tarnish the image of His Royal Highness The Sultan of Selangor.
Thank you.”