13 Shah Alam PAS Youth committee members quit posts

Shah Alam PAS Youth head Helmi Radzuan and his deputy Zainal Said are among 13 Shah Alam PAS Youth committee members who have tendered their resignations.

Former Shah Alam PAS Youth vice-head Abbas Salimmi Adzmi said they resigned from their positions from July 14 to yesterday and they acted voluntarily citing the party was seen as getting more exclusive.

He said their resignation letters had been handed to Selangor PAS Youth secretary for further action and they had also informed Shah Alam PAS president Azli Yusof as well as Shah Alam MP Khalid Abdul Samad on the matter.

Describing PAS as moving more towards inclusiveness, Abbas Salimi claimed the approach taken by the new leadership after the party general assembly in June had complicated understanding as well as the work of the committee at central and state levels.

"When the change (at central and state levels) took place, it became difficult for us in Shah Alam to move...it is not the problem of programmes but it is the moving of the central and state PAS Youth away from the previous course," he said.

"As it is difficult for us to have continuity in PAS Youth, we decided to resign and become ordinary members," he told reporters here today.

When asked if the resignation is linked to Gerakan Harapan Baru (GHB), Abbas Salimi said he and his 12 friends did not rule out the possibility of the considering the alternative path.

Meanwhile, Selangor PAS secretary Mohd Khairuddin Othman in a statement said the party respected their decision as the party constitution allowed them to do so.

On this, Selangor PAS Youth will be told to fill the vacancies according to party rules, he said.

"It is their right, we know the direction they are heading. On that, we congratulate them. It is better for them to be bold with GHB rather than hide behind their PAS positions," he said.

In another development, Mohd Khairuddin confirmed only two state assemblymen from Selangor PAS joined GHB while 13 other state assemblymen still declared their loyalty to the party's leadership.