Two groups have demanded that the Selangor government retracts its pledge to bear the legal costs of PKR's Sri Muda assemblyperson Shuhaimi Shafiei, who has been charged with sedition .

Kedah Gerakan Youth said in a statement that the Pakatan Rakyat-led state government does not have any right to use public funds to pay Shuhaimi’s legal expenses.

Youth chief Tan Keng Liang said the Selangor government’s pledge to help Shuhaimi would set a bad precedent among Pakatan-led states, as the case involves the actions of an individual and not something sanctioned by the state.

“If Pakatan wishes to help the Sri Muda assemblyperson, I suggest that they pay his legal costs using money from Pakatan coffers. Do not involve the rakyat’s money,” he said today.

The anti-Pakatan Selangor government movement, Gaps, also hit out at Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim, saying that the pledge is a clear sign of wastage and corruption in using public funds to help a “traitor”.

Gaps chairperson Hamidzun Khairuddin said the intention is questionable, as it appears that the Selangor government is only interested in defending leaders of the “same caste”, while the public continue to suffer.

“If a traitorous criminal is to get hundreds of thousands of ringgit of support from the state government, then anyone who faces court action also has the right to receive the same financial help from the state government,” he said in a separate statement.

“Such corrupt administration is similar to the actions of (Egyptian president) Hosni Mubarak, the proud dictator who is facing fires of protest from his people.”

Shuhaimi was charged this morning under the Sedition Act for allegedly questioning the position of the Selangor sultan in a blog post on Dec 30 last year.

However, he claimed that his comments were manipulated, as he was referring to 'lackeys' in Putrajaya.