SHAH ALAM – Bersatu’s Selat Klang assemblyman Datuk Abdul Rashid Asari has refused to respond to the written notice following his support for the Selangor government until the party leadership responds to his questions.
Aside from the state government’s decent performance, Rashid added that his decision came after being underappreciated by the party for some time.
“When it comes to this, why would I wait? It is better to support the state government, which I did voluntarily and without any offers.
“I willingly supported the government because I was poorly treated.
“I also see that the unity government does not make many errors. Selangor is still okay, its budget is good, and there are various forms of government assistance which (one) can get from birth until death,” he said at his office at Plaza Masalam here today.
One of the instances Rashid considered as poor treatment was when he, as the Selangor Bersatu chief, had an agreement with his counterparts from PAS and Gerakan for the 2022 general election seat arrangement.
PAS wanted the Kapar seat, originally designated to Bersatu, at the last minute.
“I wanted to defend the seat because if you gave it to PAS, they would claim it until doomsday and Bersatu would lose a seat…however, not a single Bersatu member entertained (my argument).
“It was like talking to a wall – shame on me.”
Rashid also reiterated claims that certain cartels ran Selangor Bersatu after its candidate lineup for the state election was changed without his knowledge.
He claimed several party leaders removed 17 out of 22 candidates he chose for the polls and replaced them with members of their respective cliques, although he was blamed and perceived as not doing his job.
Rashid pointed out that he was loyal to his party during the Sheraton Move by giving up his state executive councillor role at that time to remain in the party.
“When you become an opposition representative, your fund allocations are cut, so I suffered.
“I have about 80,000 voters and half a million residents in my constituency. No one (in Bersatu) cared. Although they were ministers at the time, they did not help me.
“These (feelings) accumulate. We, as humans, have our threshold for patience. When I built Selangor Bersatu from zero until people were familiar with the party, we won many seats.”
Although May 31 was initially marked as Rashid’s final day to respond to the notice, he said Bersatu gave him a 30-day extension.
“It is up to them (party leadership) as my stance is unwavering. As long as they do not answer my questions, which are important to the party, (I shall not respond).”
Even with the possibility of being ousted from his party, Rashid said he was still confident that he could retain his role as assemblyman, asserting he did not do anything wrong by supporting the state government.
He asserted that the invalid membership of two of Bersatu Supreme Council members indicated that whatever decisions made during meetings with their presence were void.
This was because the two council members – Mohd Rafiq Mohd Abdullah and Mohd Yazid Mohd Yunus – did not fulfil Bersatu’s criteria of being Bumiputera Malays, Sabah or Sarawak-born upon their appointments in 2019. He also claimed the clause was secretly amended afterwards.
“(Amending the clause) needs the Registrar of Societies’ approval, and then you must hold an annual or extraordinary general meeting to get members’ support.
“The two party men are not qualified to be supreme council members as they did not adhere to the terms.
“Now, if they are still members of the supreme council and were present in the meeting where they decided to issue a notice to me, and if their positions are invalid, then the notice is also invalid.”
On May 17, Bersatu secretary-general Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin said the party sent letters containing written orders by its supreme council to lawmakers and assemblymen who expressed their support for the government. They were given 14 days to respond.
Besides Rashid, they are Datuk Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal (Bukit Gantang MP), Datuk Zulkafperi Hanapi (Tg Karang MP), Datuk Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Kuala Kangsar MP), Datuk Suhaili Abdul Rahman (Labuan MP), Zahari Kechik (Jeli MP), and Mohd Azizi Abu Naim (Gua Musang MP). – May 31, 2024