The leadership rift in Selangor DAP is likely to come to a head this weekend judging from the response of rival leaders to a 'unity list' of state committee members proposed by former state chairperson M Manoharan.

In an unexpected move, Manoharan, who is now the interim vice-chairperson for Selangor DAP, issued a statement urging delegates to the state convention this weekend to support a group of "handpicked" candidates.

"The time has come for all DAP leaders and members in Selangor to bury past differences by voting a united and formidable team to face (the upcoming general election)...I wish to offer an olive branch by proposing a unity list for the consideration of the delegates," he said in his statement today.

In the list, Manoharan proposed for 12 incumbents to be returned to the state committee but also suggested that four office bearers be dropped in favour of three new faces.

Those dropped from the list include interim assistant organising secretaries Jack Wong and Ho Hong Heng, assistant treasurer Ang Leng Kiat and committee member M Pulanthran.

In their place, Manoharan proposed the inclusion of John Chung, Ong Chee Kin and Cheong Kai Cheng.

Satisfy rivals

Contacted later, Manoharan said he had selected the15 candidates based on their abilities and party loyalty.

"They were handpicked by me as the former chairperson to Selangor DAP. I checked their past performance and those who did not perform to my satisfaction have been dropped. These leaders should give way and compromise," he added.

He also said the list should satisfy his rivals, particularly those aligned to state secretary Ronnie Liu.

An open rift broke out between the two last May when Manoharan, who was then state chief, sacked eight office-bearers said to be Liu's supporters for allegedly not showing up for meetings.

As a result of the split, the party's national leadership dissolved the Selangor panel and reconstituted an interim panel headed by national treasurer Fong Kui Lun and national deputy chairperson Karpal Singh.

The interim leaders will hand over their responsibilities to the newly elected state panel.

Personal agenda

However, Liu said he was not aware of the unity list.

"I do not know what he is trying to achieve with this list. For one, he did not talk to me at all before suddenly coming up with this list. For another, he has not explained why he dropped so many office-bearers," he added when contacted.

Liu also expressed doubt whether the list would be acceptable since the committee members dropped were key office-bearers.

Jack Wong too claimed to be in the dark over the list.

"How can he call for unity by dropping the main office bearers? I think he is just trying to remove people (aligned) to Ronnie. He may have a personal agenda to remove me because I may be seen as a tougher guy," he said.

However, Wong said he would not oppose the list but would leave the matter to be decided on Sunday by the state convention delegates.

Another incumbent Selangor leader, interim vice-president Teng Chang Khim believed that the list was fair since it included an equal number of candidates aligned to both sides.

"I think the unity list is a good idea since it includes leaders from all walks of lives. Manoharan has also included six candidates from his team, the incumbents, and eight from Ronnie's team. This leaves me. I am not aligned to either of them," he said.

Teng, who is Bandar Klang state assemblyperson, said the list would help patch up Selangor DAP leaders since it would eliminate the need for candidates to out influence each other.

"By including more people from Ronnie's camp than his own supporters, Manoharan is in essence conceding his chairmanship," he added.

Teng is himself a controversial member of the state committee and a known rival of Liu. He was earlier alleged by Liu to be an instigator to the May leadership rift, although he has denied this.

Another hotspot

The Selangor state convention will kick-off a series of state-level party elections to be held in five other states over the next three months. They are Federal Territory, Penang, Johor, Perak, Melaka and Pahang.

The state election in Melaka is also expected to be a contentious affair due to a leadership dispute which broke out early last year.

The squabble threatened to spill over to neighbouring Negeri Sembilan but fizzled out after a gag order was issued to prohibit party leaders from speaking to the press.

The Negeri Sembilan division and four others - Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu and Sarawak - are not due for state elections until next year.