PETALING JAYA: June 13, 2009 marked a significant date for PKR. It was the day the party welcomed a new hero to its stable, Zaid Ibrahim.
However, much has changed since then. Zaid is now on the verge of quitting the party, after firing a battery of allegations against its supremo Anwar Ibrahim, and the latter's protege Azmin Ali.
Zaid also pulled out of the race for the PKR deputy presidency, accusing frontrunner Azmin of playing dirty.
Speaking to FMT, Azmin expressed his disappointment with Zaid's change of tune and his stinging criticisms.
"The party accepted him with open arms and the perception was that he could carry out PKR's reform agenda. He was one of those who got the most privileges in the party.
“When he first came in, he was given senior posts and placed in the supreme council. Even the people who struggled for the last 10 years in the party couldn’t make it,” he said.
'He failed to perform'
The Gombak MP pointed out that Zaid was also given the opportunity to make a comeback into Parliament via the Hulu Selangor by-election.
"All he had to do was to return the favour by serving the party. But he could not even perform in the party when he was given this golden opportunity. What has he been doing for the past one year? He did not even attend meetings.
“I don’t think it (Zaid's allegations) is fair to the party… he has failed to perform when in fact the party put faith, trust and confidence in him,” he said.
Azmin said the former law minister had revealed his “true colours” when he failed to turn up in Batu Sapi to help PKR in the Nov 4 by-election.
He said although Zaid was in Sabah at the time, he was more preoccupied with campaigning for the deputy presidency instead.
“He was in Kota Kinabalu and Tuaran campaigning for himself. He stayed in a luxurious resort and met with division leaders when he was supposed to help us in Batu Sapi,” he said.
“After all the trust we had in him, he turned his back on us and attacked the party. We may have weaknesses, but why can’t he discuss with us rather than taking it to the media?” he asked.
'He is not a team player'
The PKR leader also painted a bleak picture of Zaid's political future, saying that the latter was not a team player and therefore would find it difficult to succeed if he formed a new party.
“I don’t think the (new party) will have any impact because the members have seen his true colours. We don’t want a Trojan horse in the party.
“I don’t think he even understands what ‘reformasi’ is all about … so if he wants to leave the party, by all means, do it,” he said.
“He is not a loyal follower. In all cases, he wants to be a leader but he fails to be a good leader… he is more individualistic than a team player. You can’t move on like that,” he added.
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