Malay NGOs going against Perak Sultan’s wishes

Star
IPOH: The Malay non-governmental organisations in the state are going against the Perak Sultan by rejecting the six-three-one formula for the make-up of the state executive council, said Mentri Besar Mohamad Nizar Jamaluddin.

He said the organisations, numbering about 20, were exposing themselves to unnecessary trouble from the palace by insisting there should be more Malays in the exco line-up.

He pointed out that it was the people whom the Sultan would listen to on who should be in the executive council, not the NGOs.

“But if the NGOs want to make noise, that is their right,” he told reporters after meeting with village heads and penghulus at the State Secretariat here yesterday.

“If they want to go against the wishes of the Sultan, let them fight. And we should get away from these NGOs,” he quipped.

On Sunday, Nonee Ashirin Mohd Radzi, who chaired a special meeting with the NGOs, said they could not accept the formula, as it did not reflect the composition of the state population with Malays as the majority.

The formula agreed upon by the new state government would see the DAP taking up six exco posts, PKR three and PAS one.

The NGOs had also rejected the creation of two Deputy Mentri Besar posts, on the basis that the positions were not provided for in the state Constitution and only served to fulfil the DAP’s political interests.

However, Mohammad Nizar said the question about the two deputy Mentri Besar posts did not arise as the names had already been finalised and submitted to the Sultan of Perak.

Asked about the exco line-up, Mohamad Nizar said the new state government was awaiting word from Sultan Azlan Shah who was presently in London.

Meanwhile, Mohammad Nizar clarified that the 18 DAP assemblymen, in accepting him as a Malay mentri besar, did not mean that the party had acceded to Malay supremacy.

“No, I think that the assemblymen were accepting what has been provided for in the state constitution, and are abiding by it,” he said.

He urged all doubters to give them 100 days to prove themselves, likening the new state government to a marriage.

“A couple might be newly married, but after three months, they would truly be in love. Three months is a fair period to judge and assess (the new government). Anything less is unfair,” he added.