Malaysia's Anwar says opposition plan to seize power on track

KUALA LUMPUR : Malaysia's Anwar Ibrahim on Wednesday said an opposition plan to seize power remained intact despite a series of secret talks between one of its partners with the ruling government.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi over the weekend announced his United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) had held three meetings with the opposition Parti Islam se-Malaysia (PAS) to discuss issues related to Islam and Malay unity.

Local reports said the move by PAS to engage UMNO without the knowledge of Anwar's Keadilan and the Chinese-dominated Democratic Action Party (DAP) had created rifts in the opposition, which is divided along religious and idealogical lines.

But Anwar, a former deputy prime minister, said PAS had assured him that it was committed to the opposition Pakatan Rakyat alliance.

"We are still on track. It is not a question of toppling the government but to ensure that the people win. I have said that I am the prime minister in waiting.

"For now, I have no reason to question the intention of the PAS leadership. They have given an assurance to me that the collaboration with the opposition remains and is unchanged," he said.

PAS youth chief Salahuddin Ayub told AFP that there will be no more "secret meetings" with UMNO.

"We remain committed to the opposition pact. We will work together. We will not discuss with UMNO the issue of power sharing," he said.

In April, the three opposition parties announced a strategic alliance after humbling the ruling coalition with unprecedented gains in elections the month before.

The parties, rallied by Anwar, claimed more than a third of parliamentary seats and five of the 13 states in the March 8 polls, handing the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition its worst electoral result since 1969.

Anwar also said he had briefed 38 foreign diplomats from key Western countries including the United States on the political situation in Malaysia.

He also said he had talked to them about the sodomy allegations levelled against him by a 23-year-old male former aide.

He said the claims had been fabricated to prevent him from seizing power and showed he posed a threat to Abdullah's coalition, which has ruled Malaysia for more than 50 years.

A return to parliament would be the next step in the political rehabilitation of Anwar, who was sacked as deputy premier in 1998 and jailed on sodomy and corruption charges.

The sex conviction was later overturned, but the corruption count barred him from public office until April.

AFP/de
Channel NewAsia
24/07/08