Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) internal problem that threatened to split the party is now over – both Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim and party deputy president Azmin Ali – are losers.
Both bit the dusts in the do-or-die political feud as party de facto chief Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim ‘walks on stage in style and take the celebrated trophy’ which is the Mentri Besar post.
Whether Anwar’s move is right or wrong for the future of PKR and Selangor under Pakatan Rakyat (PR) rule is not important at present because the priority is to stop the Khalid-Azmin feud from damaging the party.
Anwar has shown his political shrewdness in solving the internal feud without affecting unity nor trust within PKR and partners in PR – DAP and PAS – by ‘dumping both leaders’ and putting himself as the ‘winner.’
Anwar’s method, consider crude and smack of cruelty, is effective in eliminating once and for all any future internal feud and power struggle within the party while at the same time open the opportunity for him to jump one step nearer to his long-time ambition to the Prime Ministership.
If Anwar can show his leadership capability in developing Selangor as Mentri Besar, then his attempt to helm Putrajaya in the next general election will be an easy path.
Talking about Anwar’s way in solving the internal friction, an Umno member said it was a matter of how one solved a problem and Anwar or probably his smart advisors had shown the way that did not slight anybody in the party as well as did not rock the relationship within PR.
“Given that choosing Azmin over Khalid would slight and anger certain factions in the party and standing by Khalid’s side would affect future unity in the party, Anwar dumbed both and take it upon himself to the front.
“In this way, nobody is hurt and party unity maintained,” said former Kuang assemblyman who was a former Umno youth exco member Datuk Suhaimi Abdul Rahman.
Anwar’s candidacy in Kajang state seat is also not a problem as Barisan Nasional (BN) has no candidate of Anwar’s caliber in the upcoming by-election.
Traditionally an MCA seat although 48 percent of the voters are Malays with Chinese making up 41 percent and the remaining are Indians, MCA has failed in the last several general elections and in 2004, DAP which had held the seat gave it to PKR.
Known as an opposition seat, BN is going in as the underdog and is expected to remain as that since MCA has no candidate to match Anwar.
