SHAH ALAM: The Sultan of Selangor on Monday rejected a request by PKR's de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim for a meeting between him and the party's candidate for the Menteri besar post, Datin Seri Wan Azizah.
In a decree issued today, the private secretary to Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, Datuk Mohamad Munir Bani confirmed that the Royal Higness received a letter penned by Anwar requesting for a meeting on August 10.
The letter that was written on behalf of Wan Azizah, stated that the main reason for the request was for PKR to explain to the Sultan their current conflict and the reasoning behind the move to replace Khalid.
"The Sultan denied the request and decreed for Anwar to be informed of his decision on Monday
"He added that he has no grounds to meet with Wan Azizah who is also PKR's president to explain his stand over the issue as Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim have met him earlier the same day," he said.
Munir added that the Sultan prefers to take a neutral stand in the conflict and would not choose to support any sides as he regards it PKR's internal issue.
However the termination of Khalid from his PKR's membership do not affect his standing as the Menteri Besar as well as an assemblyman for the state.
Khalid's administration on Monday won the endorsement of the Sultan who helped ensure that the process of eliminating him from the state post will be much harder for PKR than anticipated.
The Sultan had clarified in the statement that the decision was made by the Royal Highness alone and not during the Selangor Royal Assembly Council meeting as reported in some media outlets.
"It is a routinely scheduled council meeting and the Sultan did not discuss matters pertaining to politics and the replacement of the Menteri Besar.
"However the Sultan informed members in the council of his endorsement for Khalid to remain as the Menteri Besar as he was able to guarantee that he still holds the majority support in the state assembly.
"Before the council meeting, Khalid had met with the Menteri besar to inform the Royal Highness of his termination from PKR and a number of issues pertaining to the state's longdrawn political turmoil.
"The Sultan made his decision and informed members of the council about it only after that," said Munir.
