Former Penang PKR leader Mohammad Fairus Khairuddin's departure from PKR to Umno is no cause for concern, says PKR state committee member Abdul Malik Kassim.

Abdul Malik, who is also a state executive council (exco) member, alleged that when Fairus was part of the council, he would doze off.

lim guan eng koh tsu koon penang land scandal issue 220409 fairus khairuddin "He was literally sleeping during meetings," Abdul Malik told a press conference today.

Fairus ( left ) quit his post as Penang deputy chief minister (II), Penang state exco member and Penanti state assemblyperson after he was subjected to investigations for graft in March last year.

This forced a by-election in May last year. Umno abstained from contesting, claiming that it was not a necessary by-election. PKR then retained the seat.

Last night, Fairus formally joined Umno during a function attended by Prime Minister and Umno president Najib Abdul Razak. He cited a loss of confidence in PKR.

Abdul Malik claimed that it was Pakatan who earlier lost confidence in Fairus after he failed to perform his duties properly.

"In political history, people can come and go as a evolutionary process. This does not mean the party is out of control. Why not have a look at Chua Jui Meng and Zaid Ibrahim who crossed over to Pakatan?"

Signature campaign

Abdul Malik then wished Umno luck in accepting PKR's ‘problematic characters’.

"I am not just talking about Fairus. There are similar characters such as (Bayan Baru MP) Zahrain Hashim (who quit PKR on Feb 12). I do not want further elaborate, but when necessary, I will reveal more.

tan tee beng pc 030110 01 "Why he did not quit six months ago but only now? Maybe six months ago Umno lacked an interest in him. He was nobody but since they are attacking us, he has now become a little more valuable".

Penang’s Pakatan state government has been facing several waves of attacks from within and without prompting a series of counter-measures.

PKR Bayan Baru recently launched a signature campaign to urge Zahrain to vacate his seat to force a by-election.

Today, PKR’s Nibomg Tebal MP Tan Tee Beng ( above ) announced that he was quitting PKR to be an independent like Zahrain. Former PKR secretary-general Salehuddin Hashim also revealed that he had left the party formally sometime back.