New name enters mix for Selangor MB post

KLANG: Selangor will have a new Mentri Besar on June 19 when incumbent Datuk Seri Azmin Ali officially steps down.

While it is still a toss-up between Sungai Tua assemblyman Amirudin Shari and Seri Setia assemblyman Prof Dr Shaharuddin Badaruddin for the post, Sungai Kandis assemblyman Mat Shuhaimi Shafiei has emerged as a possibility.

Although Amirudin and Dr Shaharuddin are both exco members, Mat Shuhaimi is the Selangor PKR information chief.

Yesterday, the Selangor Sultan’s private secretary Datuk Mohamad Munir Bani announced in a brief statement that the swearing in of the new Mentri Besar would be held at the Istana Alam Shah here.

The Mentri Besar seat fell vacant after Azmin was appointed into the Federal Cabinet as the Economic Affairs Minister.

However, the Selangor Ruler had directed Azmin to remain as Mentri Besar until the appoint- ment of a successor.

If the new Mentri Besar is either Amirudin or Dr Shaharuddin, there will be a vacant spot in the 10-member state exco line-up that must be filled by a PKR assemblyman.

The vacancy has prompted certain groups to push PKR to fill the post with an Indian candidate.

PKR has four members in the exco and besides Amirudin and Dr Shaharuddin, the two others are Haniza Mohamed Talha (Lembah Jaya) and Hee Loy Sian (Kajang).

Suaram director K. Arumugam said the special commitment for Indians in the Pakatan Harapan election manifesto required serious attention in Selangor as one third of the country’s Indian population lived in the state.

“The various issues of poverty and socio-economic marginalisation of Indians in Selangor have not been seriously dealt with to date,” said Arumugam.

He also said it was timely for the Selangor government to have an additional Indian in the exco to specifically look into elevating the socio-economic status of the marginalised Indians.

“There is much discontent among the Indians in Selangor that the multi-racial PKR – with high representation of Indians as its members in the state – has completely failed to nominate any Indian assemblyman for the exco position since 2013.

“This is indeed appalling,” said Arumugam.