Aug 8, 2010
PKMS faction seeks ruling on leadership
It wants Registrar of Societies to resolve party's power tussle
By Zakir Hussain
One of two feuding factions vying for control of Singapore's only Malay-based political party wants the Registrar of Societies to determine who is rightfully in charge of the party.
The faction in question, led by Mr Borhan Ariffin, is confident the registrar will decide in its favour.
Its spokesman, Mr Ali Aman, said yesterday that was because 'we have the support of the majority of our members'.
This faction of the Singapore Malay National Organisation (PKMS) held an extraordinary general meeting yesterday. It was attended by 100 party delegates.
At a press conference after the meeting, Mr Ali also said the faction he represented planned to contest the upcoming general election, hopefully under the banner of the Singapore Democratic Alliance led by Mr Chiam See Tong.
The rival faction issued a statement yesterday evening to say it did not recognise the meeting held earlier by Mr Borhan's group.
'Legally, they have no right to lay claim nor hold an annual general meeting (AGM) under the PKMS name,' said Mr Ali Asjadi, the deputy president of the second faction.
His group, led by Mr Osman Hassan, is holding an AGM this afternoon at the party's office in Changi Road.
This week, Mr Osman and four other leaders of the party will also appear in the High Court to seek an order for Mr Borhan and two other trustees of the party to sign documents ceding control.
Their ongoing tussle for leadership of the party is nowhere near over, four years after it began at a party election in 2006.
At that meeting, Mr Osman led a group to oust then-president Mr Borhan and his deputy, Mr Ali Aman.
Neither Mr Borhan nor Mr Ali Aman attended the 2006 meeting, saying it was not organised according to party rules. They applied for a court order to contest the legality of the takeover.
Both sides agreed to settle the matter at fresh polls in 2007, but those proved equally contentious, with Mr Borhan's side saying the election was improperly organised.
They also took issue with the way Mr Osman's council was running the party and managing its funds.
Last September, a group from Mr Borhan's faction tried to change the locks on the doors of the party's office, claiming that they were the party's rightful leaders.
Matters came to a head as members and supporters from both sides clashed in a street brawl outside the PKMS building on Changi Road.
A total of 21 party members were arrested for rioting, and 12 were charged in court in March. They include Mr Ali Asjadi and his secretary-general, Mr Malik Ismail, as well as five men from the rival side.
The case is ongoing.
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Aug 10, 2010
PKMS leaders seek to end tussle for control
By Zakir Hussain
NEWLY elected leaders of the Singapore Malay National Organisation (PKMS) said they are considering taking legal action over the ongoing tussle with a breakaway faction, which also claims leadership of the party.
'We need to put a stop to this prolonged debacle which is causing unnecessary confusion and dissatisfaction among members and the Malay public alike,' Mr Ali Asjadi said in a statement on Sunday.
'Our silence and diplomatic approach have been taken for granted.'
Mr Ali was elected party president on Sunday after an annual general meeting at the PKMS building in Changi Road to elect a new supreme council.
He had been deputy to party president Osman Hassan, who stepped down on Sunday to become adviser to the council.
Last Saturday, the rival faction held its own extraordinary general meeting and said it wanted the Registrar of Societies to determine which faction was rightfully in charge of the party.
That group is led by former president Borhan Ariffin, whose removal at a 2006 annual general meeting sparked an ongoing saga for control of Singapore's only Malay-based political party.
Mr Ali reiterated on Sunday that his group did not recognise the breakaway faction's meeting and its outcome.
Mr Borhan had been expelled from the party since July last year, he said, adding that according to the constitution, a member who takes the party to court will lose his membership.
Mr Ali was himself charged in court in March, along with 11 others, for rioting outside the PKMS building in September last year. That was when a confrontation broke out after a group from the rival faction tried to change the locks on the doors of the party's office.
The court case is ongoing.
Also elected on Sunday were deputy president Abu Mohamed, secretary-general Mohd Nazem Suki, vice-presidents Ismail Yacob and Abdul Mutalib Isnin and youth wing head Azhar Ali.
Asked about plans for the general election, Mr Ali would say only that his team would work closely with the opposition Singapore Democratic Alliance, of which the PKMS is a component party.
Mr Ismail said that the party had brought in six to eight new faces and would work with other opposition parties to avoid three-cornered fights.
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Aug 12, 2010
PKMS faction ordered to give up HQ
Deeds to Changi Road building must be transferred to elected party officials by Aug 24
By Zakir Hussain
THE High Court has ordered members of a breakaway faction of the Singapore Malay National Organisation (PKMS) to sign over trust deeds to the party's Changi Road building to elected party officials.
If they fail to sign over the deeds and the transfer documents by Aug 24, the Registrar of the Supreme Court will do so on their behalf.
The order by Justice Lai Siu Chiu was made at a closed-door hearing on Tuesday, according to court documents seen by The Straits Times.
The move could bring Singapore's only Malay-based political party a step closer to settling a leadership dispute that has been going on for the past four years.
The court order came two days after a new PKMS supreme council, led by former deputy president Ali Asjadi, was elected at a party conference on Sunday.
The leadership saga began in 2006 when Mr Ali Asjadi, Mr Osman Hassan and Mr Malik Ismail led a group which ousted then-president Borhan Ariffin and his deputy, Mr Ali Aman, at the party polls.
However, Mr Borhan and his deputy did not attend that meeting, saying it was improperly organised. They have, since then, challenged the legitimacy of those who were elected and continued to regard themselves as the party's rightful leaders.
They also declined to sign over trust deeds to the building even though they were removed as trustees in the aftermath of the 2006 party election.
In July last year, an application by Mr Borhan and two others to be recognised as PKMS' legitimate leaders was dismissed by the High Court.
Mr Borhan was subsequently expelled from the PKMS by party leaders who said that, according to the Constitution, a member who takes the party to court will lose his membership.
Late last year, Mr Ali Asjadi, Mr Osman Hassan, Mr Malik Ismail and PKMS applied to the High Court to compel Mr Borhan, Mr Ali Aman and two other trustees - Mr Atan Rafiee and Mr Kamsan Moyong - to effect the transfer.
Trustees are appointed by party delegates and have control over key decisions on the party's four-storey building.
It sits on land which was estimated to be worth $10 million last year, and houses the party headquarters, coffee shops and offices of several small businesses.
But this prized asset has often been at the centre of heated disputes for control of the party.
Last September, members from Mr Borhan's team tried to change the locks on the doors of the party's office.
Party officials prevented them from doing so and the resulting clash outside the building left four men injured.
A total of 12 men, including MrAli Asjadi and Mr Malik Ismail, were subsequently charged in court for rioting. The case is ongoing.
Last Saturday, Mr Borhan organised an extraordinary general meeting at which he said that he wanted the Registrar of Societies to determine who was in charge of PKMS.
Mr Ali Asjadi, speaking to reporters a day later, said he was considering taking legal action against Mr Borhan's breakaway faction over the matter.
Contacted yesterday for his response to Tuesday's court order, Mr Borhan said he plans to appeal against the decision.
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