'If Khusrin was promoted based on his loyalty to BN/Umno, then our nation will have a civil service that is neither 'civil' nor of much 'service'.'

Khusrin clocks in, Khalid meets S'gor Sultan

Yvoon: I would like to ask chief secretary to the government Mohd Sidek Hassan on what basis Mohd Khusrin Munawi was picked amongst the candidates.

The Selangor government was fair to include him as a candidate, but he came out last. They have also been transparent about their selection process and they were fair to the sultan by submitting three names and hearing the Tuanku's opinion on them. As such, there is room for free and open discussion. In this way, they are respectful of all the stakeholders in the state's civil service.

The chief secretary should spell out the reasons for his choice so that other candidates know the right criteria for promotion and they can work harder in future. That is meritocracy. If as everyone suspects, Khusrin was promoted based on his loyalty to BN/Umno, the other candidates will ‘down tools' and play more politics. Then our nation will have a civil service that is neither ‘civil' nor of much ‘service'. We can then forget about nation-building.

With this type of shenanigans, it is no wonder that all our civil servants find that there is no point working hard - it's better to just ‘suck up' to the bosses or whoever is in Putrajaya.

With this, the nation suffers, the rakyat suffer, and the system deteriorates. If PM Najib Razak does not care so long as he wins back Selangor from Pakatan Rakyat, I think he is underestimating the groundswell.

AB Sulaiman: In this time of crisis, here's an opportunity for Khusrin to realise that the check-and-balance system has largely broken down.

If he is up to it, he should contribute his part to restore it. He should do so by realising that the executive arm of the government is beholden not to the politician legislators, but (i) to the constitution and (ii) to the people.

It is the people who pay his salary after all. Would you enjoy getting your salary knowing full well it is paid to you most reluctantly by your paymasters, namely the people?

Albert: MB Khalid and his excos should directly tell Khusrin in no uncertain terms that he is not welcomed to work with the Pakatan state government as state secretary. Any appointment made by Khusrin to meet the MB shall be deferred as long as possible if not completely refused.

Khalid should partially, if not completely sideline, Khusrin in all the exco meetings, and most importantly, in the implementation of Pakatan state government's policies. This is to prevent Khusrin from undermining any efforts (which he is extremely capable of, based on his past behaviour as head of the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department) undertaken by the state government to improve the lives of the rakyat.

Instead, Khalid should make full use of the two assistant state secretaries to perform the state secretariat functions.

Daniel Tan: Only in this part of the world can there be a ‘no shame' employee forcing himself to be employed without the employer's consent.

Cala: Is Khusrin a part of the rotting organism? Otherwise how can one explain Khusrin's appointment by Umno-led BN coalition to the Selangor state secretary post despite vehement objections from the Pakatan state government?

Actually from Emile Durkheim's concept of ‘social facts', Khusrin's appointment is entirely consistent in a society that is rotting from within caused by a corrupted regime (Ritzer, 2008, pp.74- 77). In studying any social phenomenon, Durkheim argued that one should look beyond the actor to grasp the full picture of the contributing forces.

After a good five decades of misrule by a regime wherein morality, righteousness and honour have been consigned to history, what matters is looking after the self-interests of individual political agents, not the larger societal interests. In accepting this appointment, Khusrin is in direct confrontation with past tradition, and it shows that Khusrin has little respect for the spirit of democracy.

This is a clear case of open defiance to the wishes of the people in Selangor. Legal or otherwise is not the essence of the discourse.

Nicholas Lim: Paragraph (3) states that the state secretary "shall have the right" to attend but this "right" is superseded if it does not fulfill paragraph (4) where it states that before the state secretary has the "right" to attend "a meeting of the State Executive Council, he shall take and subscribe in the presence of the Menteri Besar the following Oath of Secrecy."

Since the "presence" of the menteri besar is required when the state secretary is reciting the oath of secrecy, all Khalid Ibrahim has to do is to refuse to be in the presence of the state secretary when the oath is taken. Thus, with the state secretary being unable to "subscribe in the presence of the Menteri Besar the following Oath of Secrecy", he has not been granted any "right" by the state constitution to attend any meeting "of the State Executive Council and the Legislative Assembly".

In conclusion, the state secretary shall have the right to attend the proceedings of the State Executive Council and the Legislative Assembly but before the state secretary attends any such meeting he has to take the oath of secrecy before the menteri besar.

I believe that covers the Selangor government constitutionally. I would be very much interested to hear the opinions of the BN lawyers in this regard.

Armour Man: If Khusrin has any self-respect, he should withdraw. Has he no shame in coming into the post of state secretary in this manner - rejected by the boss, against the will of the state government and hated by the people he is supposed to serve?

Withdraw, Khusrin, withdraw.

Khusrin: MB refuses to meet me

Abil: Khusrin, you are a government employee and you have a press conference without your bosses' permission? Is it acceptable that you behave like a politician? You must behave like a civil servant subservient to the state of Selangor, which is helmed by the rakyat's choice.

Patriot: Khusrin needs to bring in an English dictionary for state cabinet meetings because Khalid conducts his meeting in English. After the usual salutations at the beginning in Malay, the rest of the meeting is in English.

I wonder how the SS (state secretary) can do his job. Otherwise, Khalid can just send him for an extended training course in Selangor Civil Service Training School in Morib to teach him English as he had said in the press conference his English was not too good.

Or restructure the oganisation chart and let him be in charge of royal protocol, canteen, car park, etc.

Habib RAK: If professionalism had prevailed, this matter would not have arisen. As head of civil service, the KSN (chief secretary to the government) should know better. The blatant disregard for common sense by the KSN has now lead to unproductive effort and time wasted by so many high-level people.

Nevertheless, this episode has now given an opportunity for the Selangor state government to debate the issue at the soon-to-be-called State Assembly. Even though Pakatan does not have two-thirds majority, the subject matter will be debated, issues will be exposed for all to see and judge.

We can see if the BN Aduns will support what's good for the state and the sultan. I must say, the sultan's move is indeed a smart and wise move. With this issue, he has an opportunity to get back the power he once yielded before it was striped in the 1993 constitutional crisis.

SusahKes: Well, after what your ‘real boss' (PM Najib) and gang did in Perak, I wouldn't blame the MB for refusing to see you. Who would tolerate another hijacking of a Pakatan state by Putrajaya ‘pirates'?

Do you think that the MB is acting to protect only his political interests? The MB is acting on behalf of the majority of Selangor folks who are fed up with Umno's machinations. The MB is providing a ‘voice' to the many of us who otherwise could not vent our frustrations at this latest ‘wayang kulit' from Umno and Co.

Who is paying your salary? If Selangor is paying, then I would implore the MB to hold your salary until your engagement is sorted out. Why should Selangor folks pay the salary of a ‘pirate' from Umno?

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