Khir Toyol: Not again, please

PETALING JAYA - Former Selangor mentri besar Dr Khir Toyo said it does not matter if he is not chosen to lead the state again should the government returns to the Barisan Nasional.

"The state now is in a mess. The damage done is irreparable and there is too much politicking," he told reporters in Puchong, near here, Thursday.

He said while he is adamant about helping the Barisan to wrest back thd state from the Pakatan Rakyat coalition, he is not concern about returning to his former position.

He added that he would be satisfied to be just a state assemblyman, saying there are several people of calibre who can head a Barisan administration.

"The most important thing for all Umno and Barisan people is to stay united in the face of critcisms and slanders by the Pakatan-ruled government.

"I'm used to getting criticised and tarnished by the other side. For Umno, even when we do good - there is always some people saying we are bad or corrupted.

"But looking at the current situation, the Pakatan administration is a mess and has not lived up to the promises and expectations of those who voted them," he said.

Khir said people in government should be careful about what they promise. "We cannot promise something we cannot fulfill," he said.

In a lighter vein, he added: "We are lucky. Our competitors have turned out to be just mediocre."

Dentist turned politician

Khir, who became Selangor MB at the age of 36 in 2000, lost the post after the Barisan failed to obtain majority in the Selangor state assembly during the 2008 elections.

He, however, had won with a bigger majority than in the previous polls in his Sungai Panjang state constituency

A dentist by profession, he said he did not become a rich man after he became the mentri besar (replacing Abu Hassan Omar).

"I had my business and I was already drving a Mercedes Benz before becoming MB," added Khir, who was succeeded by corporate luminary Khalid Ibrahim, who is also PKR treasurer-general.

Power struggle at the top


Khir alleged there is a power struggle in the state government between Khalid and Bukt Antarabangsa assemblyman Azmin Ali, who had wished to be MB but was sidelined by the PKR leadership for the post

Khir, who is currently the Opposition Leader in the Selangor state assembly, said in the midst of the quarrel between the two there were accusations that he (Khir) was trying to topple the state government.

"Why should Umno or the Barisan waste time at this juncture to oust the state government?

"Look at Perak, the situation is still undecided and the tussle for the state government has gone to the courts.

"It is different here in Selangor. We are looking at the next general election to win back the state not at anytime before that.

"However, anything can happen...like in Kuala Selangor (where 13 committee members of the division resigned en bloc on Wednesday).

"That is not Umno's doing but sooner or later some people are going to say that Umno had a hand in that issue."

Khir said neither he, Umno nor the Barisan in Selangor is going to interfere in the affairs of the PKR and its Pakatan allies, the DAP and PAS.

"Let them deal with their own matters," he said.

Malaysian Mirror
21/01/2010

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