Selangor PAS welcomes the appointment of PKR vice-president Azmin Asli as the new Selangor PKR chief, because the move would enhance Pakatan Rakyat's election machinery.

roslan sms shahir mohd shahir Its information chief, Roslan Mohd Shahir ( right ), said Selangor PAS was also confident that the reshuffle will now allow Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim to fully concentrate on the state's Merakyatkan Ekonomi Negeri (MES) agenda.

The party's backing of both Azmin and Khalid comes in the wake of an intense campaign by Umno to highlight cracks in Selangor PKR following its leadership reshuffle on Sunday.

Top Umno leaders have been touting that Selangor PKR was now akin to a ship with three captains - Khalid as menteri besar, Azmin as state party chief and Anwar Ibrahim as state economic advisor - and hence heading for disarray.

In an apparent attempt to dissuade naysayers, Roslan described Azmin as a veteran politician who has worked well with PAS since the 1999 general election, which saw him being elected to the Selangor legislative assembly along with four others from PAS.

"Selangor PAS will continue to provide the fullest cooperation to him as the new state PKR chief," said Roslan.

azmin ali pc in parliament 020709 02 He said that Selangor PAS would be seeking a meeting with Azmin ( left ) soon in order to coordinate efforts between the two parties, and is looking forward to his presence at the state Pakatan Rakyat leadership meeting.

"Another meeting with Khalid would be organised soon to state Selangor PAS' support and confidence in him as the state administrator," added Roslan.

Haniza won't quit PKR

In a related development, Taman Medan state assemblyperson Haniza Mohd Talha has denied allegations that she intends to resign from PKR.

"Such rumours reflect how desperate our enemies are. They are trying to create problems and suspicion about the Pakatan state government," she said in a statement today.

Contrary to rumours, Haniza said, Khalid has her full backing as menteri besar, a sentiment she said is shared by three others whom the press speculated as possible defectors: Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad (Seri Setia), Amirudin Shari (Batu Caves) and Shuhaimi Shafiei (Sri Muda).

"Khalid has done a lot for Selangor in terms of its economy, development and welfare of its people," she said.