Discord over Zaid Ibrahim’s role in PKR
October 16, 2009
Discord in PKR over Zaid’s role, says Malaysian Insider
Matters which have been percolating for weeks boiled over at PKR’s emergency political bureau meeting on Tuesday night.
A decision was made that Datuk Zaid Ibrahim should not go to Sabah and Sarawak this weekend as a result of the open revolt by divisions there.
PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim believes that Sabah PKR needs new leadership but 17 of 23 divisions in the state do not want any leader sanctioned by Kuala Lumpur foisted on them.
Several PKR leaders here believe that by going to Sabah and Sarawak, Zaid would be sending the wrong signal and not showing solidarity with party headquarters.
But party insiders say that a schism between Zaid and others in PKR had been inevitable given their different styles in running the political party.
Several PKR officials are troubled by Zaid’s gung-ho approach to solving problems and pushing for a common platform with Pakatan Rakyat (PR) partners. Zais had been brought into the party by Anwar earlier this year with great fanfare.
The former UMNO man had been given the task of crafting a common platform for the PR coalition to take into the next general election, with an eye towards taking Putrajaya.
But The Malaysian Insider understands that he has faced obstacles not just from PAS and DAP but from within his own party.
Some PKR officials believe that he has ambitions to eventually lead the party — a possibility if Anwar is convicted for sodomy.
These leaders see Zaid as a threat to them. They are also suspicious about whether a more inclusive and multiracial approach will be enough to win over the majority of voters.
Zaid’s supporters in the party say that he has stepped on toes because he believes that Malaysians are ready to embrace multiracialism.
His stand, that PKR has a historic opportunity to become a platform of multiracialism, has not gone down well with some party leaders.
Zaid is understood to be reconsidering his position in the party and may choose to take a step back.
But what is clear is that breakdown in relations between several PKR leaders and Zaid is the last thing which the party and the PR alliance needs at this point.
Despite a winning streak in by-elections in Peninsular Malaysia since Election 2008 that was only broken last week in Bagan Pinang, the coalition remains fragile.
PAS and DAP have been squabbling publicly over their respective Islamic and secular stand on government policy.
PKR has also been faced with problems in Selangor, with the threat of defections from among its rank still a potential threat.
And without strong units in Sabah and Sarawak, the federal opposition can forget about governing Malaysia.
I just cannot understand what these people want. Can’t they just give and take. These kind of politics may be too deep for me to understand but party leaders and its members must remember that, we, non members supporters cannot remain for long if the squabbling continues. I want my people, he want his people, they want their people to lead, why why why. Can’t they just compromise, work together for the sake of the country and the rakyat. What I can see are self serving bunch of idiots.
Richard Loh - October 16, 2009 at 4:37 pm
zaid ibrahim is the light this country needs. the fact that he is going on 6 months leave is really sad because both pkr and pakatan need his services MOST over the next 6 months . with his taking a few steps back , political in fighting will take a few steps forward – and this will augur poorly not only for the country but also for both PKR and pakatan .
what else is there to say but TA’DA !!!
peach ann nacion - October 16, 2009 at 4:39 pm
and all this while i thought PKR was here to serve the ra’ayat ! now we know that they are no different from umno and barisan , where SELF is more important then the RA’AYAT. zaid ibrahim and the path that he sees is that of a VISIONARY and his is the path to follow.
how can the rest not see this ?
samsiah hussein - October 16, 2009 at 5:06 pm
A case of ” fikiran simpit ” on the part of azmin and gang i think. ” GAJAH DI DEPAN MATA TAK NAMPAK , SEMUT DI SEBERANG SUNGEI NAMPAK PULAK “.
really din , i cant understand how they in keadilan can allow zaid ibrahim to go on six months leave ? mustahil lah!!!
anwar ibrahim can go on six month’s leave , but i dont think they can allow zaid to – his mission is too important for the country . AND SIX MONTH IS A VERY VERY LONG TIME ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU CONSIDER THE MISSION THAT HE HAS BEEN ASSIGNED . THIS MISSION IS MORE IMPORTANT THEN AZMIN AND HIS GANG AND AZMIN’S AMBITIONS . DOES’NT AZMIN KNOW THAT ?
rashid hussein - October 16, 2009 at 5:19 pm
Well, that is politics, be it UMNO’s or PKR’s. Anwar Ibrahim is trying hard to manage his party and also intra-PR relations while at the same time having to defend himself in our courts on Sodomy2 charges.
Just give him to time (in the next few weeks) to sort things out. He should know that a house divided cannot stand (Abraham Lincoln). Both Azmin and Zaid are ambitious people. Only Anwar will finally decide for PKR.
eiz235 - October 16, 2009 at 5:33 pm
This is just a storm in the tea cup. There are enough level headed and rational leaders in PKR who can see the big picture, that Sabah and Sarawak are front line states on the way to Putrajaya. It is foolhardy to let differences in approach to fester. Let us wait; there is a solution and it will be resolved amicably with the interest of PKR and its mission in mind. –Din Merican
ed dinobeano - October 16, 2009 at 5:42 pm
I sincerely hope this is just “a strom in the teacup” dinobean. We have to remember that a large proportion of ‘leaders’ in PR/PKR are ex-umno. Hence, they may not be as visionary adn ‘competent’ as Zaid to understand the way he thinks. If they want gain stronger support from the rakyat, they have to start changing the way they think pretty quickly. I sense the rakyat’s interest and support for PR is waning. I hope I am wrong here.
Commonsense - October 16, 2009 at 6:06 pm
TO let the ” LIGHT ” of keadilan to go on 6 months leave on the eve of DEVALI is rather inappropriate . It looks like the proverbial darkness is beginning to shroud PKR and PAKATAN .
jeff - October 16, 2009 at 7:30 pm
Over some five decades the Malays were led by leaders (some claiming to be more Malay than they are to hide their real ethnicity) who drilled into them daily that they are under threat from more recent immigrants not of the Malay race and would need protection less they be marginalized in the country of their birth.
Suddenly out of the woodwork emerges visionary leaders like Zaid (looking much like the Indian who operates a corner shop in my neighborhood) screaming “multiculturalism” what are the rest of us to say. That he has seen the light? May as well be since the Festival of Lights is upon us.
Democracy of the Jeffersonian variety is likely to mean that we can never rise above race and racial issues. After some five decades of UMNO rule and after much bullying, are we to think that we are now ready to take politics to a new different level i.e. one not based on race?? The majority is not ready for it. They can never be ready. Which child is ready to let go of his lollipop?
Mr Bean - October 16, 2009 at 8:28 pm
I imagine there are Malays in PKR who are just about ready to string people like Zaid Ibrahim (a successful entrepreneur and himself the product of UMNO’s NEP) up the nearest tree. They say it is alright for people like Zaid Ibrahim to talk about multiracialism and multiculturalism because they say he has made it to the top 500 richest man list in the Fortune magazine. Here is a man who made his pot of gold on the back of the disgraced NEP policy and is now a top philanthropist in Malaysia spending millions to benefit the disadvantaged among Malaysians.
Mr Bean - October 16, 2009 at 8:44 pm
Which child is ready to let go of his lollipop? Bean.
Ms. Ozawa?
tean - October 16, 2009 at 8:45 pm
Kojak was hanging on to his lollipop until he was ready to pop!
Mr Bean - October 16, 2009 at 9:07 pm
Many have always held the view that PR was cobbled together in haste with the sole purpose of taking advantage of the swell of opposition to BN inside the country and thereby denying the ruling party their two thirds majority. The rest of their story that the three members of the coalition had agreed to put aside their ideological differences for the sake of the country was baloney.
For far too long well wishers have given PR the benefit of any doubt whenever quarrels have erupted. It is no more of PR being on a learning curve but that it is just nowhere near ready for Putrajaya. It is safe to assume therefore that Malaysia’s new dawn has been indefinitely postponed.
Isa Manteqi - October 16, 2009 at 9:55 pm
Oh good grief, we’re back to square one again.
Commonsense - October 16, 2009 at 10:00 pm
Anwar is a real fool if he lets Zaid go just to pander to Azmin’s whims and political ambitions. A real fool.
abuzar rashid - October 16, 2009 at 10:00 pm
5 decades – that’s the time it takes for UMNO/BN to stoop themselves into the filthy mess of backbiting and headstepping in their selfish scramble to grab certain ‘strategic’ posts. Its a ‘normal’ cycle faced by any organisation – big or small. The jolt of the 08 tsunami have somehow slow down the cycle and with appropriate measures taken by them, this cycle may take another course and maybe they can stop it for good.
What about PR ? They don’t need decades, just give them a mere 2 years of power, and they are already in the deep end of this dreaded ‘cess pool’!!! I just can’t imagine what will happen if they are given the power for as long as UMNO/BN have. So these are the people we are suppose to put our trust in. Well, thanks, but no thanks.
hotman - October 16, 2009 at 10:22 pm
The PKR should change its name: The Fire Brigade Party.
As I said earlier, Anwar wants to be the Leader of the Opposition, but he spends time overseas attending high profile overseas conferences which boosting his ego. Meanwhile he left PKR to rot with infighting, and allowing wayward members to confuse voters who voted PKR in GE 2008.
Perhaps PKR is like Semangat 46, they come and go. Both formed by disgruntled UMNO members. When they don’ get their way, they rejoin UMNO or form another NGO to pursue their political interest.
PR supporters might be entering into an area of thought that they were taken for a ride!!
For someone like Zaid Ibrahim to be pissed off, there must something seriously wrong with PKR.
Anwar cannot lead by leading behind a wall and only come out to smoothen out the ruffled feathers.
Truly pathetic!!
Frank - October 16, 2009 at 10:55 pm
I think it’s time for everyone take a breather.
Step back, re-evaluate and seek the narrow path that leads to ‘wisdom’. As it stands, this gross swell-headedness, is leading to perdition.
Let’s wait to see whether Zaid has indeed been able to cobble the coalition together, before we pass judgment.
Merry Diwali everyone…
Menyalak-er - October 16, 2009 at 10:56 pm
I agree with Menyalak-er … we need to take a break from all this. We have probably become overly sensitive and raised our expectations somewhat since the 08 GE tsunami. We are so desperate to escape from the umno regime and being almost psychologically ‘close’ to a change in government, we are probably expecting ‘perfection’ too soon from a coalition that is in its infancy. We should expect PR to make many mistakes if they are to learn. And being overly critical with every wrong turn they make isn’t really helping them or the rakyat either.
Commonsense - October 16, 2009 at 11:33 pm
At this point in time, it appears PR and for that matter PKR has NO GAME Plan. And that seems to be the thinking on the ground.
If the whole exercise of allowing dissent and discontent to be publicly played out is part of an elaborate Political Strategy to outfox UMNO/BN, it is not working one bit.
Practising democracy within PR is one thing, but allowing public spats, secret meetings, allowing race and religion as boxing gloves,and a projecting a sense of organisational disorder with all the free-for-all shouting match and one upmanship between PAS and DAP, is totally another thing.
So what gives?
Frank - October 16, 2009 at 11:41 pm
Menyalak-er
It is better to give PR component parties and the PR leaders several kicks in the butt NOW and HERE than for them to get the really big kick in the butt in the ballot box later on.
Frank - October 16, 2009 at 11:45 pm
What have we got here?? A mutiny! Din Merican, it is best you go into hiding or get a bullet proof vest.
Mr Bean - October 17, 2009 at 12:03 am
“Perhaps PKR is like Semangat 46, they come and go. Both formed by disgruntled UMNO members. When they don’ get their way, they rejoin UMNO or form another NGO to pursue their political interest.” Frank
To pursue “vested interests” I should say.
Mr Bean - October 17, 2009 at 12:06 am
“PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim believes that Sabah PKR needs new leadership but 17 of 23 divisions in the state do not want any leader sanctioned by Kuala Lumpur foisted on them.”
Which begs the question: why??
It is time PR goes from local assemblying of CBU parts to increasing “local content” of locally manufactured parts.
Mr Bean - October 17, 2009 at 12:14 am
Frank, I believe that there are internal mechanisms within PKR to deal with these matters. Yes, they deserve a big kick in the groin if not the butt – the ‘war-lordism’ is probably as intense as in bumno/dap, since most of these flurs cut their teeth there. There are alignments all over the place – and the vehicle is running around in circles. Mal-alignment can be corrected, it’s a bent chasis that cannot be so easily sorted out.
The reason why Anwar is quiet as a mouse, is probably becuz he wants to avoid further fractionization, but he or Kak Wan has to speak out, lest this thing continues. I believe he will soon.
Knowing him, it takes some time for him to distance himself from sycophants. That is his weak point – he lacks the ‘brutality’, as it were, to do away those whom he perceives had supported him unconditionally over these difficult times, even though they are presently his stumbling block. This ‘gentlemanly’ conduct is comparable to Ku Li’s ‘recalcitrance’ to do the ‘right thing’ in our eyes…
No Bean/Frank, PKR is not another Semangat 46 – it has tasted victory repeatedly, by their inclusiveness mantra. It’s only that good things do not last forever, and their hubris has caught up with them. They need some time to return to their roots… and i feel that they should all sit down and scream their lungs out at each other, beat each other black and blue out of the public gaze and without a mediator like Zaid to moderate. Perhaps they will come out of it more mature and cohesive. If not, so be it… At least, we know where to stand.
_________
Good comments. The situation in Sabah requires good political judgment. An experienced with well honed political skills and and experienced Anwar Ibrahim will not allow the situation there to remain unresolved. Just give him the space to find a solution before we come to any conclusions. –Din Merican
Menyalak-er - October 17, 2009 at 1:43 am
Menyalak-er
Thank you for your explanation. We will wait and see. I really DO want to be proven wrong and REALLY wrong for the bigger good of PKR and PR.
PKR is the only hope to glue together DAP and PAS, but it needs to glue itself badly FIRST . Currently it appears PKR and worst still, PR, is leader-LESS.
The worry is that ALL Malaysians see this as a chance , perhaps, the ONLY chance to fundamentally change the political landscape in the country towards a Two-party system without race as an issue and PR leading and setting the AGENDA for change, not as an agenda for self destruction.
Your are an eternal optimist.But I will wait to see how this will pan out in the next 4 months… that’s the only time left when PKR will reach its critical mass with voters and another two months for PR. After that, I am certain it is a point of no return or “tipping poiint” for PKR/PR, either way.
As Din rightly said, PKR/PR leaders ignore these criticisms at their own peril, if they don’t put their ears to the ground, or are generally self satisfied with the current state of affairs, they have just dug their own political graves.
For the rest of us ( Malaysians), we had bitten the bullet for the best part of 50 years and life will go on as usual. History shows right-minded Malaysians are NOT likely to give PR/PKR a second chance because the emotional investment is too high. We will wait and see, but with our fingers tightly crossed.
Thanks anyway for your optimism. Hope it is not misplaced.
Frank - October 17, 2009 at 5:34 am
Sorry but I cannot see any reason at all for optimism at what is going on inside PR. Whoever takes over in Putrajaya must ensure peace and stability in the country before anything else. I do not feel the current PR can guarantee that.
Isa Manteqi - October 17, 2009 at 2:36 pm
Isa Manteqi
You are right, it’s very hard to rationalise the ability of the current PR leaders to guarantee peace and stability of our beloved country if they take over Putra Jaya. I’ve mentioned numerous times in my comment to this blog that PR don’t have a proper ‘action plan’ to go with their colourful rhetorics. They don’t even have a proper strategies to contain their own people. Their only visible strategy was the strategy of blaming everything on UMNO/BN/police/MACC etc.etc. It may work sometimes but not everytime.
Picking fights with enforcement agencies is a very stupid strategy. By now, we should have realised that this strategy only served as a cushion to ease the fall of a person called Anwar bin Ibrahim. We should also realised by now that PR is bigger than Anwar Ibrahim. The ideals of PR must be maintained even without this man, or Kit Siang or Tok Guru. A good strategic planning must be formulated NOW! There are too many h
hotman - October 18, 2009 at 3:31 am
Perhaps they (PR) need a jolt here and there to knock some senses into their thick heads. The rakyat are watching their every move.
Tok Cik - October 18, 2009 at 8:58 am