Shahidan challenges PR to name PM in shadow cabinet

KUALA LUMPUR: Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Dr Shahidan Kassim yesterday challenged the opposition Pakatan Rakyat to name the prime minister in its proposed shadow cabinet.
He said the prime minister was usually picked from the strongest or dominant party and that in this context, the DAP had the most number of parliamentary seats among the three partners, the other two being PKR and PAS.
"The party with the majority now is the DAP which has 37 seats. The PKR has 29 seats and PAS, 21 seats. As such, the prime minister should come from the DAP.
"Or do they want to give the post to the opposition leader? However, if the opposition leader comes from a weak party, then that person cannot be a strong prime minister," he told reporters at the lobby of Parliament House.
PKR president and Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail said on Monday that Pakatan would revive its shadow cabinet to strengthen the check-and-balance system.
However, DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, speaking to reporters at the lobby of Parliament House yesterday, rejected Dr Wan Azizah's shadow cabinet proposal, saying it was impractical.
Lim, who is the Penang chief minister, said the DAP had set up its own shadow cabinet and announced a list of 18 portfolios comprising the party's MPs.
The Bagan MP said none of the portfolios were allocated to himself, Gelang Patah MP and DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang or Kepong MP Dr Tan Seng Giaw.
The DAP shadow cabinet named, among others, Tony Pua Kiam Wee (DAP-Petaling Jaya Utara) for the Finance and Economic portfolio, Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo to head the Home Ministry and Law portfolio, and M. Kulasegaran (DAP-Ipoh Barat) for the Foreign and Defence portfolio.
Lim said he was not the prime minister in the shadow cabinet.
PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang said Pakatan must win the general election first before even thinking of the cabinet line-up.
"It does not matter if my name is not entered (in the list). The important thing is for us to win, not who get to become ministers," he told reporters.
Wan Azizah, speaking to reporters yesterday at the lobby of Parliament, said the PR shadow cabinet could not be realised due to the financial factor and disagreement among the partners. – Bernama