PKR leaders slammed PAS' fallen leader Hasan Ali for again trying to instigate disunity in the Pakatan Rakyat coalition by insisting that either PAS spiritual adviser Nik Aziz Nik Mat or president Hadi Awang take over as the Opposition Leader if Anwar Ibrahim is jailed.
Anwar, the de-facto head of the Pakatan as well as PKR, has been accused of sodomy and the court is due to deliver a verdict on January 9. However, the entire country is already expecting a guilty verdict, knowing that Prime Minister Najib Razak and former premier Mahathir Mohamad would never let go of the opportunity of locking up Anwar ahead of the 13th general elections, widely expected later this year.
"We are shocked and disappointed at Hasan's comments which reek of UMNO's standard script," PKR vice president Tian Chua told Malaysia Chronicle.
"Despite PAS giving him a warning, Hasan does not seem to appreciate the second chance that he has been given and is still working actively to split the Pakatan. This is clearly his gameplan to break Pakatan for his true political masters. Hasan has not dissociated himself from certain UMNO quarters."
Dr M's long shadow
Indeed, even along the PAS grapevine, speculation is rife that Hasan is close to the UMNO faction led by former premier Mahathir Mohamad. In recent days, the Najib administration has been in a funk over how the Malaysian public will react to Anwar's jailing. No less than former top blogger Raka Petra Kamaruddin has been roped in to whittle down Anwar's stature to soften Monday's blow.
Hasan Ali is believed to be the latest "stooge" to join the UMNO bandwagon, which even includes Malay celebrities who have in recent days been calling on the people not to participate in the 901 Free Anwar rally planned for the next week.
But as many pundits have pointed out, it is more than Anwar Ibrahim, the most charismatic Malay leader to have emerged in recent decades, or the Pakatan Rakyat, which has proven it has cut its teeth and is well able to take over the federal government.
The real anger Malaysians are feeling is directed towards what is plain for all to see - gross injustice by a cruel government willing to go to all lengths to victimize a rival just to secure its own hold on power.
That dark intent is reflected in the words of Hasan, still a PAS member and yet willing to turn the knife into his coalition mates.
“If I had the power to decide, it’s these two that I would choose. If our morals are being questioned, how can we talk about goodness?” said Hasan, a former PAS vice president, who was snubbed by his party at its recent internal polls and dropped as the Selangor commission.
Hasan latest action is bound to stir up fresh calls for PAS to sack him. Hasan's leanings towards UMNO have become too obvious to ignore.
He was the prime mover for a merger between PAS and UMNO in 2008 and has never given up the idea. UMNO is said to have promised him the post of Selangor Mentri Besar if he managers to convince the top PAS leadership to accept UMNO.
Hasan had also said Nik Aziz and Hadi were both better suited to lead the Pakatan as they were men with morals, grounded in religion, which he said was necessary to lead a nation of 28 million people.
However, for a self-proclaimed Islamist, Hasan appears to have forgotten his own religion's requirement that before a person can be convicted of adultery or sodomy, 4 witneses are required.
Otherwise, the accuser would be guilty of fitnah or gross slander, which it appears Hasan may now be guilty of.
Top secret talks and three possibilities
Pakatan has said Anwar will continue to head the coalition and if Pakatan wins GE-13, he would still be prime minister.
In a recent interview, Anwar had revealed that Pakatan has already 'selected' a replacement for him in the interim. He did not disclose further details except to predict that Pakatan would survive even without him at the helm.
“We have decided on the leadership during elections or post-elections in the event I’m imprisoned," Anwar told Bloomberg.
Pakatan sources tell Malaysia Chronicle that a secret top level talk has already taken place among the three leaders - Anwar, DAP's Lim Kit Siang and PAS' Hadi Awang.
"They have discussed about among themselves and an agreement has been reached. There are three possibilities but the final decision will not be made so soon," the source told Malaysia Chronicle.
"If Pakatan wins and the need emerges for a PM to be named, then Hadi and Kit Siang wil sit again and make the announcement if Anwar is in jail. At this point in time, it is wasting time speculating on whom it will be, because even Hadi and Kit Siang haven't made the final decision although they have agreed together with Anwar on the structure and direction that Pakatan will take specifically with regards to the replacement PM."
Anwar was charged with sodomising a former male aide, Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, in 2008. The High Court is set to announce its decision on Monday and Anwar faces up to 20 years in jail if found guilty. However, the 64-year-old has denied the charges, maintaining from day one that it was Najib and wife Rosmah Mansor who plotted Sodomy II to derail his political rise.
Malaysia Chronicle
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