Najib arrives for audience with Sultan Azlan Shah - Malaysiakini

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak is in Ipoh for an audience with the Sultan of Perak to seek consent for the Barisan Nasional (BN) to form the new state government after obtaining a simple majority and take over the reign from Pakatan Rakyat.

Malaysiakini has the report.

Najib in Perak to convince sultan
Feb 5, 09 10:25am

Perak Barisan Nasional chief Najib Abdul Razak is presently having an audience with Sultan Azlan Shah at the Istana Kinta in Ipoh.

Najib is expected to inform the sultan of BN's strength in numbers in the state assembly that will allow the coalition to take over the control of the state from Pakatan Rakyat.

Also present at the meeting with the deputy prime minister is Perak Umno deputy chief Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. Najib and Ahmad Zahid arrived at the palace at 9.50am.

After the meeting with the sultan, Najib, who is also the Perak Umno chief, will be chairing a state Umno meeting.

Top on the agenda would the choice of menteri besar to lead the BN government.

He had earlier cancelled a function in Putrajaya this morning to attend the meeting
with the Sultan.

Pakatan goes to court

Meanwhile, Perak state assembly speaker V Sivakumar has applied to the High Court to declare that undated resignations letters by former Pakatan representatives as valid.

The three - PKR's Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi and Osman Jailu, and DAP's Hee Yit Foong - have claimed that their quit letters signed soon after being elected as
assemblypersons last March were done under duress.

The Election Commission has overruled the Perak speaker on the matter.

Yesterday Perak Menteri Besar Mohd Nizar Jamaluddin also met the sultan for almost two hours to request for dissolution of the state assembly so that a snap state election could be held.

The fate of the state government now hinges on the Sultan. Political observers are waiting to see if he would allow BN to form the state government or will dissolve the state assembly.

Among the other developments taking place in Perak today:

* Pakatan will be holding its council meeting in Ipoh later this afternoon. Pakatan leader Anwar Ibrahim and all other top guns from the alliance are expected to be present at the meeting.

* A mammoth gathering is also being organised tonight outside the menteri besar's residence in support of the embattled Pakatan government. A crowd of about 100,000 is expected.

* Anwar and other top Pakatan leaders are among the speakers at the rally, which is to begin at 7.30pm.