By Haris Ibrahim
Late last year, in a move seen by many as boosting PKR’s prospects in the forthcoming state elections in Sarawak, Ngemah independent state assemblyperson Gabriel Adit, apparently with thousands of his supporters in tow, joined PKR.
A Malaysiakini report dated 13th November, 2008 quoted Adit as saying that “once he is officially in PKR, he will help his colleagues at state and national levels to build up the party’s grassroots where it counts most ahead of the state elections”.
At the PKR Congress on 29th November, last year, Adit was showcased as a key asset to the party making a siginificant headway in Sarawak at the next state elections.
In June, this year, the PKR Sarawak leadership underwent a revamp. A Malaysiakini report dated 3rd June, 2009 has it that this exercise was with a view to “strengthen the party in view of the upcoming state elections”
Mustaffa Kamil Ayub, who hails from Perak, Semenanjung, and who was appointed the new chief of PKR Sarawak in the state leadership revamp, acknowledged that “the initiatives taken by certain Dayak leaders to join PKR had opened the minds and eyes of their supporters so much so that they too have now joined the party”, that the “number of Dayaks in the party has increased significantly” and that “It is important, therefore, we give an emphasis to the participation of the Dayaks in the party”.
Adit was appointed a member of the state leadership council.
Last week, Malaysiakini reported that a new party called Pakatan Rakyat Malaysia would be launched in Sarawak in the next few days and that this new party would be helmed by Adit. In another report of the same date, Malaysiakini reported that when asked if he was behind this new party, Adit denied this and said “As of today, I am still a PKR member. But who knows (about) tomorrow?”.
Is PKR about to lose one who Anwar had categorised as a strong ally in Sarawak?
About the same time that the Sarawak PKR leadership was being revamped, the PKR leadership in Sabah underwent the same.
Azmin Ali, MP for Gombak, took over leadership of PKR Sabah from Anwar.
There was obviously some unhappiness with Azmin’s appointment, given his remarks just after his appointment and before he made his first trip to Sabah in this new capacity, reported in Malaysiakini, that “In Sabah PKR for example, we do have our differences as in any party, but they are not serious enough to cause a party split or prevent us from working together or with the other opposition parties”. Azmin then alluded to the appointment by Najib of Shafie Apdal, a Sabahan, as Kedah Umno and BN chief and then asked, “Does this mean that they don’t trust a Kedahan or someone from the peninsular?” and answered that question himself with “At the end of the day, when it comes to the general election, all PKR candidates in Sabah will be from the state itself. That’s what really counts”.
Last week, Malaysiakini reported that, on the night of 7th October, 16 out of a total number of 25 Sabah PKR division heads met, concurred that they had no confidence in Azmin’s leadership and communicated this to the party top leadership in KL.
More telling, that report has it that the 16 want Azmin removed from this post with immediate effect and have made it clear that “no one from outside Sabah should be appointed to head the PKR chapter in the state ever again”.
The PKR man who spoke to the Malaysiakini reporter had apparently said : “We don’t want these very imperial ketuanan Melayu (Malay political supremacy) types in Sabah. He’s ex-Umno and has not changed one bit since joining PKR”.
The 16 division chiefs have recommended to PKR HQ that Keningau division chief Jeffrey Kitingan be appointed as the new Sabah chief to replace Azmin.
I called my source in Kota Kinabalu last Thursday to find out what was going on.
That source put me in touch with two PKR Sabah individuals who are very much in the know.
One a Muslim, the other a Catholic. Both locals.
Both were initially reluctant to divulge anything, their concern being that I might disclose their identity or that I might not report anything adverse they might say of PKR or Anwar.
As to whether they could hold me to my word that I would not disclose their names under any circumstances whatsoever, I asked them to check back with the source that had hooked me up with them.
As to their other concern, I assured them that any statements of fact adverse of PKR or Anwar, substantiated with evidence, and in the interest of the rakyat that the same be made public, would be reported. Statements of opinion, if fair, and not amounting to a personal attack, would be treated similarly.
I assured them that I was neither a PKR or Anwar supporter. I was for the rakyat.
They checked with my source and came back to me on Friday with a lot to say.
I’ll share that with you in the next post.
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