PKR vice-president Azmin Ali has scotched rumours of a rift between him and Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim by throwing his support behind the state PKR chief.

Speaking during his winding-up speech on the final day of PKR congress in Shah Alam today, the Bukit Antarabangsa assemblyperson said Khalid would always have his support as the party's state liaison chairperson in Selangor.

The relationship between the two leaders was recently put under the spotlight after speculations that Azmin could be picked to replace Khalid as the Selangor menteri besar following his lackluster performance.

Both Khalid and Azmin have denied a riff in their relationship and dismissed the rumour.

While Azmin said that the Selangor government is encountering a number of administration problems, he added that these could be resolved.

"I am supporting Khalid instead of praising him. If I were to praise him, I would say that he is a handsome man," quipped Azmin.

"I am supporting him as a leader and that he is the best choice there is for Selangor.

"Selangor should be an example for other states to emulate and be the best Pakatan-led state in the country," said Azmin, drawing cheers from the crowd.

Prepare for state polls in Sarawak

Azmin, who is also Gombak MP, also said that PKR is setting up a special election task force at both the state and division levels to register new voters.

kuala terengganu parliament seat 291108 "This task force is needed so that we could have a clear mechanism to register these voters for the upcoming elections," he added.

He said that the opposition will soon be facing a by-election for the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary seat following the death of Umno's Razali Ismail two days.

"Even though there is no official date set for the by-election yet, Pakatan will discuss the matter and regardless of who will be contesting the seat, we will respect the decision and give our support to the candidate.

He added that there could be a state election in Sarawak next year.

"The election committee will conduct an analysis and have it documented so that we can overcome our weaknesses for all of us to ‘turun padang ' in Sarawak," he added.

Azmin further pointed out that each MP and menteri besar from the peninsula is required to adopt a parliamentary constituency in Sarawak and visit the area every week.