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The Pakatan Rakyat leadership must meet urgently to implement strategies that will restore public confidence in the coalition following the prolonged Mentri Besar crisis in Selangor, said DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang.
“Pakatan leaders all over the country must not delude ourselves into thinking that we had not emerged unscathed from the MB crisis, which has gravely undermined the confidence people of different races have placed on us,” he wrote on his blog, Tuesday.
Lim said his interactions with the public had revealed that many were concerned whether Pakatan would continue to exist after the worst crisis in its six-year history.
“There was relief that Pakatan had not broken up, but also growing doubt about the sustainability of the coalition because of the degree of commitment of component parties to set aside their differences and give topmost priority to common policy goals and objectives.
“For this reason, the Pakatan leadership must meet urgently and frequently to map out strategies to restore public confidence,” he said.
Lim pointed out that the Selangor MB crisis had shown that Pakatan was a coalition of equals, as every component party had equal say in its direction, where differences and disagreements were resolved with patience.
“If the three component parties cannot resolve their important differences, it will mark the immediate end of the Pakatan coalition,” Lim added.
He was referring to the divided views between the coalition members - DAP, PKR and PAS - on the removal of Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, who was asked to make way for PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
Khalid was sacked from PKR on Aug 9 for his refusal to step aside willingly, and following several allegations of impropriety during his tenure as MB.
However, the PAS syura council and Selangor PAS leaders had openly backed Khalid to stay on, against the stance adopted by its coalition partners DAP and PKR.
The PAS central working committee which convened on Sunday to discuss Khalid’s fate eventually decided to retract its support for the embattled MB, and to back its partners.
The party also named PKR deputy president Azmin Ali as a second candidate for the mentri besar post.