Inferring from the transcript of the press conference given by PAS secretary-general Mustafa Ali as reported by Malaysiakini on Aug 14, his party has refused to accept Wan Azizah Wan Ismail due to the Selangor sultan’s supposed rejection of her as the next menteri besar, and PAS is of the opinion that the sultan has such power to reject her.

Such opinion of PAS is a misinterpretation of the state constitution pertaining to the “discretion” the sultan has over the appointment of the menteri besar.

In truth, this discretion of the sultan is to be exercised only in the event that there is ambiguity as to which nominee commands the support of the majority of the assembly. In this case, there is no ambiguity. Wan Azizah has demonstrated that she has the support of 30 assemblypersons out of 56 in the assembly, and there is no other competing nominee, so the sultan has no discretion not to appoint her. And that is the constitution.

This appointment is now urgent, as the position of the MB together with the executive council is deemed vacated, following Khalid Ibrahim’s refusal to resign. This is in accordance with the interpretation of the Perak state constitution by the Court of Appeal and the Federal Court ruling on the Nizar vs Zambry case.

And since the Perak constitution and the Selangor constitution are similar on this aspect, the ruling on the Perak case is now legally binding on all parties - the sultan, MB and the executive council - in the current Selangor case.

That Selangor is now found without an elected government is an emergency situation that needs an immediate solution. This means that there is an urgent need for the sultan to appoint Wan Azizah as the menteri besar immediately. She would in turn advice the sultan to appoint members to the executive council.

As for PAS, it must not delay any further in expressing its solidarity with Pakatan Rakyat in the current appointment of Wan Azizah, who in any case, is already qualified for such position, with the 30 assemblypersons supporting her.

KIM QUEK is a retired accountant and author of the banned book ‘The March to Putrajaya’.