Khusrin appointment legal, no need for royal consent

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 5 – Chief Secretary Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan stood by his appointment of the new Selangor state secretary today, adding there was no “legal requirement” to obtain royal consent.

Breaking his silence for the first time since the row erupted in December, Mohd Sidek (picture) called for an end to the ongoing dispute, declaring he had adhered to the law when appointing former Selangor Islamic Religious Department director Datuk Mohd Khusrin Munawi as the new Selangor state secretary.

He also said that the Selangor Constitution did not stipulate the need for him to consult the state government when making such an appointment.

“The appointment of Mohd Khusrin as the state secretary was in accordance with the Federal Constitution, the Selangor Constitution and regulations under the Public Services Promotions Board, whereby there are elements of consultation with the state government through the state secretary.

“This appointment process is carried out in the selection of state secretaries in other states whether helmed by Barisan Nasional or otherwise, like the Penang state secretary,” he said in a media statement this evening.

“Additionally, Article 52 of the Selangor Constitution does not state any need for the Selangor Government to be consulted before the appointment of the state secretary is done.

“As such, the lack of consultation here does not disturb the current appointment. According to convention, the Public Services Department (PSD), as the secretariat for the promotions board, can prepare its candidate choices for the state secretary post to the state government as a matter of courtesy,” Mohd Sidek added.

Similarly for the Sultan, he said that the Selangor Constitution did not set conditions that the Ruler had to approve an appointment.

He said the Sultan’s consent on Mohd Khusrin’s appointment was merely a matter of “courtesy”.

“In this process, any names presented for the Sultan’s perusal is just a matter of courtesy. What is legally valid here is that the appointment is made through the ‘appropriate service commission’, as stipulated in the Constitution, or the promotions board, which carries out the PSD’s powers, as stipulated under Article 144(5B) of the Federal Constitution,” he said.

Despite opposing views from legal experts, Mohd Sidek insisted that the term “appropriate service commission” enshrined under Article 52 of the Selangor Constitution specifically referred to the promotions board and not the Selangor State Services Commission as suggested.

“In this matter, the Selangor state secretary is selected from among federal civil servants in the administrative and diplomatic services scheme (also known as PTD in its Malay acronym) and their appointment commission is the PSD.

“This is because the PTD’s services falls under Article 132(2)(c) of the Federal Constitution which refers to ‘the general public service of the federation’,” he said.

Mohd Sidek also pointed out that Article 144 of the Federal Constitution states that all powers and functions of the PSD or the Education Commission, other than the first appointment to a permanent post or a pensioner post, can be carried out by a board chosen by the King.

“In this case, the Agong had set a regulation known as the Public Services Promotions Board 2010 to carry out the PSD’s powers in the process of federal civil servants promotions and appointments.

“As such, Khusrin’s appointment was entirely according to constitutional provisions,” he said.

Mohd Sidek also gave his assurance that he had not obtained any political input from federal administrators, including the Prime Minister himself, when selecting the candidate for the state secretary post.

“In matters involving the appointment of the state secretary or any other federal officers on the state-level, I, as the Chief Secretary to the government and chairman of the promotions board, do not accept any political input or refer to any federal administrators including the Prime Minister.

“These matters are carried professionally in my capacity as the Chief Secretary and the the board chairman, with the state government, and through the state secretary,” he declared.

Mohd Sidek’s statement today comes in the heat of an intense tug-of-war between Selangor Pakatan Rakyat administrators and Putrajaya over the state secretary post.

The Selangor government, led by Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, has rejected Mohd Sidek’s choice for the post and has even announced its intention to amend the state constitution by month end.

The bill is supposed to return the power of appointment to the Mentri Besar as well as the Sultan, who had earlier come under fire for allegedly wading into the controversy by offering his consent on Mohd Sidek’s choice.

The loyalty oath-taking ceremony for Mohd Khusrin is expected to go ahead as scheduled at 10am in Istana Kayangan tomorrow, despite pledges by Selangor PR administrators that they would boycott the event.