Kedah Kita will carry on with its AGM tomorrow and will demand the resignation of party chief Zaid Ibrahim.

Despite the commotion in the Kesejahteraan Insan Tanah Air (Kita) party, it's Kedah branch will press on with its state annual general meeting tomorrow, said its newly sacked chief Zamil Ibrahim.

NONE He said the AGM in Sungai Petani is expected to issue a resolution demanding the resignation of Kita chief Zaid Ibrahim (right) for bringing the party into disrepute.

He added that the members would also seek the help of the Registrar of Societies to seriously monitor and investigate the ongoings in the party under Zaid's leadership.

"To put it bluntly, we want Zaid to get lost (berambus)," Zamil told Malaysiakini .

The Kedah chief was unceremoniously sacked by the party together with his Penang counterpart, Nibong Tebal MP Tan Tee Beng for issuing statements deemed "detrimental" to the party.

The duo together with other branch leaders held a press conference on Feb 3 in Putrajaya to condemn Zaid's abrupt decision to dissolve Kita, which he had announced in his blog on Feb 2.

Tan and Zamil refused to acknowledge the sacking, saying that it did not follow the proper procedure, and blamed Zaid for purging the leaders ahead of the dissolution.

Zaid, a great disappointment

Zamil expressed "great disappointment" at Zaid's handling of the party, saying the leader had "ulterior motives" for wanting to terminate Kita's life.

He added that if Zaid wanted to contest under the ticket of another party, he can do so by himself, and by resigning from the party first.

Zaid was rumoured to have been offered a seat in Kelantan by PAS deputy chief Mohammad Sabu, but the latter had reportedly denied the matter.

"Why does he have to involve everyone in the party? He was eyeing a seat in Petaling Jaya Selatan, but we know it did not get enough support," said Zamil.

"But he must think, that is only one seat. How about those in Kedah or Penang, we have identified the seats that we can contest," he added.

Zamil said it was clear from Zaid's actions that he acts only for his own personal interest.

'We are not Zaid's employees'

NONE He added that members had had great hope in Zaid ( left) to lead the party into the coming general elections, but respect for him dimmed after his announcement of ending the party without consulting others.

"He must be reminded that he did not start this party, neither does the party belong to him. He merely saw to the change in name of another party to allow non-Malay and non-Muslims to join," said Zamil.

He reminded Zaid that Kita is a political party and not his legal firm. "We (members) are not his employees, to be sacked as he likes," he added.

In his blog, Zaid had also mentioned the difficulties in securing funds for the party's survival.

Zamil scorned the remark, saying Zaid had never been concerned about seeking or granting funds to the branches.

He pointed out that since the set-up of Kita Kedah, the members have been footing the office rental bill of nearly RM4,000 a month in Sungai Petani, and sharing the party's activities' financial burden.

"In this one year the branch office was set up, Zaid did not give us a single cent! The members shared all the expenses," Zamil said.

  Extreme shame, embarassment

"Although humble, our office is more organised than the one in Tropicana which is supposed to be the headquarters but up till now, that one does not even display the party's signboard," he added.

Zamil lamented that Zaid's recent actions have caused "extreme shame and embarassment" to the branch members.

He added that Zaid rules from his Tropicana office, but his branch members mingle with the community to promote Kita.

"He may not be mingling with the community so he can never understand what we are going through, that we, too, have dignity and pride, one doesn't have that only because one has money," he said.

Zamil challenged Zaid to announce the number of seats the party planned vie for in the coming polls, which may be called before June, but not due until April next year.

He said the party had decided on the number and identified the seats to be contested as early as last year.

He urged party members not to be fooled by Zaid, saying if he remained president, others may refrain from showing Kita their support.

 "If he leaves Kita, we will come out in full force," said Zamil.