From Singapore's TODAY, a mass circulation free newspaper
MAY 22 — A confident Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim met foreign correspondents based in Singapore yesterday and opened the door a wee bit more on his plans to grab power.
Once the former Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister and now torch-bearer for the Opposition has the numbers to make up a simple majority in Parliament, Anwar said he will call for a vote of non-confidence in Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's government.
The numbers game is a simple one.
Twenty-nine more seats — that is what his grand coalition called Pakatan Rakyat needs to send an embattled Abdullah and his ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) packing.
But his audience did not seem totally convinced. A sense of expectation mixed with scepticism was evident among the foreign journalists, some of whom have followed his sensational roller coaster political career with professional zeal.
Do you really have the numbers, or is it just good psychological warfare, asked veteran journalist Barry Wain, who is now writing a book on former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Anwar smiled somewhat coyly, then replied: "I've said it on April 14. Yes, we have the numbers." Where does this confidence come from? Not wanting to give too much away, he said it came from reading the mood among the BN backbenchers. As though anticipating the follow-up question, the man who believes he is within kissing distance of becoming prime minister gave an example: Only three or four of Abdullah's diehards — and not 30 or 40 parliamentarians — rush to his defence every time Umno's top leadership comes under attack.
Want more evidence? Well, look no further than what the grand old man of Malaysian politics, Dr Mahathir, said recently.
Said Anwar: "Even Mahathir has conceded: Yes, there is a possibility of Anwar taking over. He didn't say it is going to be a turmoil, or a disaster or politically disastrous for the country."
Earlier this month, Dr Mahathir warned Umno members to take Anwar's threat seriously. In that conference at Putrajaya on May 7, Dr Mahathir said: "I first wanted to dismiss this possibility but on studying the situation I feel that there is a great danger."
With the Opposition now controlling 82 out of 222 parliamentary seats, Anwar said he needs just 30 BN lawmakers to cross over for the new Opposition government to run the country with a simple majority.
His concentration is all on the economically-backward states of Sarawak and Sabah, making regular visits there and offering them higher oil royalties if the ruling coalition party members will defect to his side. Defending this move yesterday, Anwar said: "We are not giving to the political leaders. Why can't we give...to these states? (These are) oil-producing states which happen to be some of the poorest in Malaysia."
Even the deadline that he has set to grab power, Sept 16, is aimed at wooing residents of the two East Malaysian states.
"Sept 16 is Malaysia Day. That excites the Sabahans and Sarawakians. Not many Umno leaders are very sensitive to this fact," he said referring to the day in 1963 when the two states and Singapore came together to form Malaysia.
But with Anwar exuding confidence and with the Abdullah administration looking weaker by the day, what can the latter do to sidestep a looming a checkmate kind of situation? Political scientist Ahmad Nidzamuddin of the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia said: "Maybe, if Pak Lah steps down, and someone else is elected by the majority of the Umno MPs - not necessarily Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak - and if somebody from Sabah or Sarawak is elected as his deputy, this could be prevent the Opposition from taking over the parliament."
Anwar threw up another possibility: A snap election called by Abdullah before Sept 16.
But he was quick to write off this threat: "To me, it is quite unlikely, because it is up to the discretion of the king. And the king will have to be convinced of the basis for such an extraordinary measure just a few months after a general election."
There is one other question: Can he become the next PM since he is still not an MP? And what about his plans to fight a by-election? A couple of constituencies have been identified, but Anwar said this plan is currently in a limbo since he has not been given a clear date yet on when he could contest.
"We've worked it out as April 15, based on what was told to me by the prison officers and by the Attorney General's office," he said. "But until today, I have not got any reply to confirm the actual date that I am eligible to contest."
His lawyers, said Anwar, had on Tuesday asked the Attorney General's office to clarify a clear position on his eligibility in two weeks' time.
But this uncertainty is not going to stop the moves towards an Opposition-ruled Malaysia, the first in the country's 51-year history. "The decision is to move. Immediately."
If he does comes to power, he wants to push for a change on a PM's longevity: Not more than two terms, like the system in the US. "I don't intend to be active in political life beyond a decade. I think the problem with our society is that people tend to stay on forever," Anwar said. — TODAY
Opposition fears 'brute force' will be used to stop takeover
22 May, 2008
By Zuraidah Ibrahim, The Straits Times
MALAYSIAN opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim warned yesterday against what he described as 'desperate voices' that might threaten 'brute force' to thwart attempts to oust the government.
The opposition will work towards a peaceful and lawful transition of power, he said at a breakfast meeting with foreign journalists in Singapore.
But the opposition was fearful of what security measures government leaders might unleash in order to protect their position.
Datuk Seri Anwar,�the former deputy prime minister who spent six years behind bars in connection with corruption and sodomy charges that continue to be questioned, is now the leader of the opposition alliance, or the Pakatan Rakyat.
The opposition stunned the ruling Barisan Nasional alliance led by Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi in the recent general election when it won five states and denied Barisan Nasional (BN) its traditional two-thirds majority in Parliament.
Since then, Datuk Seri Anwar has been trying to chip away at the government's hold on Parliament.
His alliance has been trying to court BN politicians from Sabah and Sarawak.
He announced last month that the opposition would be able to form the government by Sept 16, Malaysia Day, the day when Sabah and Sarawak joined the peninsular states of Malaya.
In Singapore for an investment conference, an upbeat Mr Anwar declined yesterday to be pinned down on whether he would meet the deadline, beyond saying 'we have the numbers'.
He also continued to express confidence in a�constitutional takeover, with Pakatan Raykat winning over MPs and proving that it has the majority support of the House to move a motion to defeat the Prime Minister.
He said he was in the middle of talks with many MPs from the government side. He divulged that several MPs, afraid of meeting him in Malaysia, had arranged to meet him in Singapore the previous night. Others met him when he was in Hong Kong a week earlier, he said.
His alliance needs 30 more seats in the 222-seat Parliament for a majority.
His nemesis and former boss, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, announced on Monday he was resigning from the Malay-based Umno, citing his disgust at Datuk Seri Abdullah's leadership.
Commenting on Tun Dr Mahathir's decision, he said the former PM was doing so for personal reasons, while Pakatan's opposition to PM Abdullah was based on the desire to forge a better government, and remove corruption and incompetence.
'I am not too excited at meeting him,' he said, but added that he did 'not preclude the possibility of discussions' with Tun Dr Mahathir, who was chiefly responsible for his sacking as DPM in 1998 that triggered the case against him.
On why he had yet to offer himself as a parliamentary candidate, Mr Anwar said he had not received official confirmation that he can run for office. Under Malaysian law, his conviction barred him from running for political office for five years after his release. He crossed this time bar last month.
Some opposition MPs have offered to step down to allow him to contest a by-election.
Mr Anwar also addressed questions on whether a non-BN government, if it comes to pass, would remove the bumiputera policy.
The alliance of the Parti Keadilan Rakyat, the Democratic Action Party (DAP) and the Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) will end the policy in its current form, but provide affirmative action for all of the poor.
But this new approach will not be at the expense of the Malays, he stressed, because poor Malays would take up to 70 per cent of the benefits.
Anwar tidak akan jadi PM lebih dari 10 tahun(MSTAR ONLINE) - BEKAS Timbalan Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim berkata, beliau tidak akan memegang jawatan Perdana Menteri lebih daripada 10 tahun jika berpeluang untuk memimpin negara ini.
"Jika anda tidak berupaya melakukan perubahan signifikan dalam 10 tahun (sebagai Perdana Menteri), bermakna sudah sampai masanya untuk berundur," kata beliau yang yakin bahawa mempunyai sokongan padu ahli-ahli Parlimen untuk menjadi Perdana Menteri.
Beliau, yang dipetik Bloomberg, menyatakan demikian pada pertemuan dengan wartawan di Singapura hari ini.
Anwar yang kini mengetuai Pakatan Rakyat berkata, sehingga kini belum lagi menerima makluman rasmi mengatakan bahawa beliau sudah layak untuk memegang jawatan parti.
Larangan memegang jawatan parti dan bertanding dalam pilihan raya selama lima tahun ke atas Anwar, yang dipecat daripada jawatan Perdana Menteri dan Presiden pada 1998, berakhir bulan lalu.
Kini Pakatan Rakyat menguasai 82 kerusi di Dewan Rakyat manakala Barisan Nasional (BN) yang gagal mempertahankan majoriti dua pertiga pula memiliki 140 kerusi.
Sejak kebelakangan ini, Anwar mendakwa beliau mempunyai sokongan memandangkan sekumpulan ahli Parlimen BN telah menyatakan kesediaan untuk melompat ke Pakatan Rakyat.
Pakatan Rakyat memerlukan 30 kerusi lagi untuk membentuk kerajaan persekutuan.
Malah, kata Anwar, beberapa wakil rakyat pembangkang telah menyatakan kesediaan untuk berundur bagi membolehkannya bertanding kerusi Parlimen.
Dalam pertemuan tersebut, Anwar juga berkata, undi tidak percaya ke atas Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi merupakan "pilihan terbaik untuk menjatuhkan" BN yang sedang memerintah.
"Anda gunakan saluran perlembagaan untuk membuktikan bahawa anda mempunyai sokongan majoriti Dewan Rakyat untuk membawa usul bagi menjatuhkan perdana menteri," katanya.
Kelmarin tekanan ke atas Abdullah meningkat ekoran keputusan bekas Perdana Menteri, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad memutuskan untuk keluar Umno atas alasan kecewa dengan kepimpinan parti.
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