Selangor Menteri Besar, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim will propose in the coming state Exco meeting upon the swearing in of the Exco members that every household will get 20 cubic metre’s of water supply free monthly. It is expected to be implemented starting next month.

Lee Keng Fatt & Melissa Darlyne Chow
New Straits Times

GEORGE TOWN, Sun:

The DAP wants Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to be the alternative prime minister and help transform Malaysia into becoming a healthy functioning democratic country.
Its secretary-general Lim Guan Eng said the party chose Anwar because it believed that he was the most suitable person to complete the transformation.

Asked why Anwar, Lim, who is also Penang Chief Minister, told reporters that the former deputy prime minister was the common choice.

“He is widely accepted by everyone in the Opposition,” he said. “We hope he is allowed to take his rightful place in Parliament the soonest possible,” said Lim.

Speaking at the one-day DAP national leadership convention, Lim urged party leaders and members not to rest on their laurels but must starting working as from now.
“Please remember that the national mission to transform Malaysia into a healthy functioning democracy is not yet won,” he said. “Only when there is political equality, equal economic opportunity, social justice, freedom from fear and corruption can this mission succeed. To do that, all members and leaders have to redouble their efforts to be a “friend” of the people to complete the national transformation of Malaysia.”

Lim said the DAP would continue to work with its allies in the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and non-governmental organisations to complete the transformation.

The DAP, in its aim to be dynamic, would double its membership by adding another 100,000 members before the next general election.

“This is challenging but not impossible,” he said. “After all, was it not considered impossible for DAP to win power in Penang together with PKR?”

“But we cannot be complacent. Just as Malaysians voted for DAP in this elections, they can just as easily vote the party out should we fail to deliver,” he said, reminding them of how the DAP won by a record number of state seats in Penang in 1990 but was punished in one of their worst electoral defeat within a single term in 1995.

Earlier, party national chairman Karpal Singh said he had confident that the party would be succeed in leading the Penang government.

“It is not easy to run a state government but we have the people who are much better than the Barisan Nasional in doing so,” he said.

Bernama

IPOH, March 16 (Bernama) — The new Menteri Besar of Perak will be sworn in at Istana Iskandariah in the royal town of Kuala Kangsar tomorrow.

The private secretary to the Sultan of Perak, Datuk Abdul Rahim Mohamad Nor, said the Regent of Perak, Raja Dr Nazrin Shah, had consented to the swearing-in of State PAS secretary Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin as the Menteri Besar.

Mohammad Nizar, who is also Pasir Panjang assemblyman, will take his oath of office, pledge of loyalty and secrecy before Raja Nazrin at 11.30am, he said in a statement faxed to Bernama today.

The swearing-in of Mohammad Nizar, a 51-year-old engineer, scheduled for Thursday, was deferred in the absence of a consensus to form a coalition state government among DAP, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and PAS.

The minor earthquake that struck Bukit Tinggi, Pahang since the end of 2007 seems to have taken a holiday for the Chinese New Year celebrations and the 12th General Election.

And now that the Chinese New Year celebrations and General Election are over, yesterday, the minor earthquake struck again thrice in the morning!

In Perlis: Ruler ignores PM’s endorsement of incumbent to appoint new menteri besar

Hazlin Hassan
The Straits Times

A POLITICAL crisis was brewing yesterday in another Malaysian state, one controlled by the Barisan Nasional (BN), after the ruler of Perlis appointed a new menteri besar (MB), ignoring the incumbent who was endorsed by the Prime Minister.

Raja Perlis Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Syed Putra Jamalullail appointed state assemblyman Md Isa Sabu despite the fact that Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim had already been given a letter of appointment by Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi.

The ruler said the appointment took effect immediately as he was satisfied with Dr Md Isa’s ability to command support from a majority of the state assemblymen.

In a statement, the ruler said this was in accordance with the state Constitution, which required him to appoint someone who commanded the trust of many to head the state executive council.

Datuk Seri Shahidan’s reappointment had been delayed by a protracted public spat with political rivals. He referred to the possibility of external interference with regard to the appointment yesterday.

‘This involves a lot of lies being told and agreements being broken,’ he told reporters outside the palace as he rushed out on his way to Friday prayers.

Datuk Seri Shahidan, who has held the position of MB since 1995, did not elaborate but it was widely believed that he could be referring to the rivalry with Umno secretary-general and Perlis politician Datuk Seri Radzi Sheikh Ahmad. Dr Md Isa is said to belong to his camp. Since last year, Datuk Seri Radzi has repeatedly called for the former MB to step down and the two have been seen quarrelling in public.

The Perlis ruler’s younger brother, local politician Datuk Seri Syed Razlan Jamalullail, has also been linked to the MB’s post.

Both Datuk Seri Shahidan and Datuk Seri Syed Razlan’s names were proposed amid talk that a deal had been struck for a mid-term change in the state leadership. Instead, Datuk Seri Syed Razlan was removed from the Arau parliamentary seat, and Datuk Seri Shahidan replaced him with his own brother Datuk Ismail Kassim.

The Perlis prince was demoted to a state seat, a move which may also not have earned the former MB any points with the palace.

Yesterday, when asked to comment, Prime Minister Abdullah simply said he had handed to Datuk Seri Shahidan the letter enabling his appointment as the MB of Perlis.

Malaysia’s constitutional monarchs have not hesitated to wield their authority amid uncertainties since Saturday’s election.

BN-ruled Terengganu still has not sworn in its MB as well. There is widespread talk that former MB Idris Jusoh may be dropped because he has apparently fallen out of favour with the Sultan for being disrespectful.

In Terengganu, invited guests and journalists were left baffled when they turned up at the palace on Monday only to be told that the swearing-in ceremony had been postponed indefinitely.

Elsewhere, Johor MB Abdul Ghani Othman is expected to be sworn in soon. There were also no problems in appointing the state chiefs in the other BN-ruled states of Pahang, Negeri Sembilan and Malacca.