Teng Chang Khim, the speaker of the Selangor state assembly, is a rare gem among all politicians in Malaysia. Once working as a court interpreter, his command of the three languages Malay, English and Chinese, is exemplar.

Linguistic skills alone do not make Teng a promising man. More impressive are his incisiveness and firm grasp of public issues that stand him in good stead in politics. One needs only to look at his effort in restoring the democratic principle of separation of powers and creating a culture of accountability with the setting up of the Selangor Select Committee on Competency, Accountability and Transparency, popularly known as Selcat.