KUALA LUMPUR 15 September - There will be no return to glory for former Selangor menteri besar Dr Mohd Khir Toyo.

Ousted in 2008 when Pakatan Rakyat wrested the state in a surprise general election coup, Khir said he is no longer interested in the post because he cannot bear the damage done to the state which he had led for eight years.

"I will tell you honestly that I have no interest in becoming an MB any more because the damage done (by the current government led by Pakatan Rakyat) is too bad [sic], it is un-repairable in a short time," he said.

This is not because he is shirking the tough job, he said, but because he thinks others should be given a chance.


After all, he said, when he was first-appointed MB at the age of 33, the state reserves were down to RM200 million and all the government-linked companies were in the red.

"Alhamdulillah, not many people have criticised me about the development of the state of Selangor, on procedures, etc. But politically, people say I am not a good leader. That's why (I say) give it to other people," he said.

As is the case of the Selamatkan Selangor (Save Selangor) campaign, he is happy to just follow in the shadow of Selangor BN deputy chairperson Noh Omar and recently appointed BN senator Ezam Mohd Nor.

"Noh Omar first, then Ezam and then me," said Khir, who is now Opposition Leader in the state legislative assembly.

His stark absence during the roadshow, however, marks what some believe is an increasingly steep downward slide for once high-flyer.

According to Khir, his choice to "trail" Noh and Ezam is less because he is a liability to BN, and more because he feels guilty for BN Selangor's defeat in 2008.

"When (BN fell in Selangor), of course I felt guilty. The responsibility was mine. I met with (then deputy prime minister Najib Abdul Razak) and said that I did not want a large responsibility and that I would rather get to know my supporters in my constituency.

"I had only served as a state assemblyperson for eight months when I was appointed MB. I was not close to my constituents. I felt guilty of this too, so now I am rectifying my faults."

Asserting that he is out of the spotlight by choice, Khir discounts talk that he is has been 'sidelined' as he is now a liability to BN, what with the incessant allegations of graft against him.

"I am not a liability. I don't feel that. When I speak people still listen. If I am really a liability then (Pakatan) doesn't need to get so personal with me.

"If people don't like me, then they don't have to worry so much about me. But they get so personal with me. Whenever I make a statement, they have to attack back."

Why he stays on

He also said that, ever since he became Opposition Leader, Pakatan representatives have tried hard to scare him into submission but he remains unfazed by this brand of "mafia" and "childish politics".

"So many people have come up to warn me, some came themselves, and then sent representatives (to say), 'Don't make too much noise. We have more (on you)'.

"I am not worried. I am responsible (for criticising the state government) because I am the Opposition Leader. If I don't point it out (their mistakes), then who will?"

But his efforts to keep the state government in check, he said, have not gained much support from the media, not even the Umno-owned daily Utusan Malaysia.

"When the 'opposition coalition' became the government, I found that there has been a tendency for the media to not criticise them. That's what I see. I don't know why. As if criticising the government is an offence. This is not right. We have to change our attitude," he said.

Nevertheless, he admitted that this was probably the case when he was in government as well, with the exception of "social media".

Unlike DAP, PAS and PKR which enjoyed much support from this medium, said Khir - who is also a blogger - social media have snubbed the opposition (BN in Selangor) this time around.

Not getting much love either from his party (albeit by choice), the media or the state government, one wonders why this former top politician is still in the game.

Already raking in RM50,000-60,000 in monthly pay before he was made MB - he is a dentist by profession - it is also not the state assemblyperson pay-cheque that he is playing for.

At the end of the day, he said, it is a question of loyalty.

"I don't want people to say that I am a leader who forgets his party. I will be with the party forever. I will serve my party well, I will serve my leader well," he said.

- MalaysiaKini