Pakatan Rakyat has given a cautious nod to the water deal between Selangor and the federal government, after being briefed on it by Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim.

The endorsement, announced by PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim today, comes a day after the Pakatan leadership council urged Khalid not to rush into the water deal.

“At the Pakatan presidential council meeting on March 6 (yesterday), Khalid explained to the top leadership of the component parties namely (PAS president) Abdul Hadi Awang, (DAP adviser) Lim Kit Siang and myself.

“Following the meeting, the presidential council unanimously endorsed, in principle, Khalid’s efforts to restructure Selangor’s water industry,” Anwar said in a statement.

The Pakatan-led Selangor government signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Putrajaya on Feb 26 to allow the state to take over water services from four private concessionaires in exchange for consent for the Langat 2 water treatment plant.

However, the MOU came under criticism as Pakatan leaders were not informed about it and concerns were raised as to whether the state government had been short-changed.

'Special committee for deal'

Anwar said during the meeting with Khalid, the Pakatan leadership imparted advice to ensure that Selangor and its people would get the best value out of the water deal.

Khalid’s administration would also be provided with feedback from a special committee comprising Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua, Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli and PAS Research Centre director Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad as the water restructuring deal unfolds.

"A decision was also reached to include lawyer Tommy Thomas in the process as an independent representative of the people of Selangor, to ensure a strong legal agreement and to safeguard the rakyat's interest.

"They (the committee) are responsible to work with the Selangor government in the execution of the water restructuring, including to scrutinise and provide feedback to future agreements that will be signed on this matter," Anwar added.