Despite denials by Prime Minister Najib Razak, PAS leaders are convinced the three men involved in a sex videotape are none other than Umno 'henchmen' commissioned by the ruling elite to kill off Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim's political career. The video purportedly shows a man who resembles Anwar frolicking with a prostitute in a hotel room.
PAS leaders also thrashed Najib's insistence that Malaysians should focus on whether the tape was authentic and not if it was an Umno conspiracy.
"What is relevant and of utmost importance is, is Anwar the man performing the sex act?" PAS vice president Mahfuz Omar told Malaysia Chronicle.
"The more Najib shies away and tries to deflect attention from this point, the more he gives himself and Umno away. It is now quite clear that his government is involved in this sleazy video."
The three men who confessed to discovering and publicly screening the tape are former Malacca chief minister Rahim Tamby Chik, businessman Shazryl Eskay Abdullah and Perkasa treasurer Shuaib Lazim. All three are Umno members.
The hit-men
The fast and fluid turn of events have revealed what hard-nosed members of the public have suspected all along, that the sex video was part of a high-level conspiracy. And somewhere along the line, pundits have said one could be sure that Umno or to be more accurate, its top leaders were actively pressing the buttons.
According to Mahfuz, greed has turned the Umno elite into an extremist force. They are desperate to destroy Anwar and annihilate his Pakatan Rakyat coalition.
Because should the Pakatan wrest federal power, the people can be relied on to demand a thorough and complete accounting of the wealth scurried away by the Umno heavyweights who have ruled Malaysia for more than 5 decades.
It has since been discovered that at least one of the 3 men are directly connected with RISDA, a government organisation which is part of the Kementerian Pembangunan Luar Bandar or Ministry of Rural Development.
Rahim is the chairman of Risda and Risda booked the conference room for the illegal screening of the sex video at the Carcosa Seri Negara hotel.
Shazryl owns fertilizer factories in Thailand and lobbies for contracts with Risda.
Shuaib is the father-in-law of Shafie Apdal, the Rural Development minister and the blue-eyed boy of Najib's.
"One has a black record involving statutory rape of a minor, one was once a bankrupt and one had engaged in dodgy land deals. Therefore, why should anyone believe these 3 men?" Mahfuz asked.
Umno wanted PAS to cut off ties with Anwar
Indeed, PAS members were warned more than a month ago to watch out for "something explosive that will be conclusive proof that Anwar was an amoral devil".
"It is likely that the Datuk T sex tape was meant to turn PKR lawmakers against Anwar and make them defect to Umno, as well as to make PAS cut off ties with such a 'sinner'," PAS MP for Shah Alam Khalid Samad told Malaysia Chronicle.
But the plot went awry.
Quick checks by PKR revealed conclusive evidence of Risda's and Shuaib's involvement. It was impossible for them to deny and they decided to confess their roles in a press conference on Wednesday.
The trio were confident of pulling it off as the entire mainstream media, which is controlled by Umno, was behind them.
Sadly for them and fortunately for Anwar, Malaysians refused to buy their story.
Worldwide attention is now on the country due to the exposure of the video. Malaysia has become a laughing stock once again under the Najib administration.
Najib's use of "sexual politicking" has dragged Malaysia through mud
Pakatan leaders have called for Najib's resignation. They said even if the video is genuine, it is still illegal for the Datuk T trio and Umno to screen it and they should be arrested and charged.
Furthermore, that is not the crux of the matter. While it is a crime to possess and screen pornographic material, the real and deeply troubling issue was the way Najib persistently used "sexual politicking" to attack Anwar and other political rivals to shore up his own grip on Umno.
"Malaysia must be the only country in the world where there are so many sex scandals thanks BN's crooked shenanigans. And the best of all is that it is still Najib's own Altantuya scandal which is still the mother of all Malaysian sex scandals," said Mahfuz.
The Pokok Sena MP reiterated that Malaysia was on the world stage for all the wrong reasons and this "has got to stop".
He is also of the view that the police are dragging their feet in this matter even though Rahim and Shazryl have been hauled for questioning. From the manner the duo had "arrogantly" denied they had been arrested, it was clear that Malaysians could expect another major BN cover-up.
"Are the police delaying the investigation on purpose so that the sex video remains hot news and thereby continues to drag Anwar's name through the mud?" questioned Mahfuz.
The Kedah MP chided Umno for becoming "insane" and putting at risk the country's image just to ensure Najib won the 13th General Election.
"Umno grassroots and the BN Government must know that all these sex scandals give a very bad impression of Malaysia but perhaps they are blind to the fact in their craze for power," said Mahfuz.
The question is: Is it Anwar, not if the tape is authentic
Meanwhile, as expected Najib denied it was an Umno conspiracy. He urged Malaysians to focus on whether the video was authentic or not.
Like another of Anwar's political enemies, Zaid Ibrahim, the PM also refused to state if he had seen the video or if he believed the man filmed cavorting with the prostitute was Anwar.
Both Najib and Zaid were immediately flayed for hypocrisy and for wickedness of spirit on the basis that their only intention was to smear Anwar by insinuation, rather than stand up for justice and what was right.
“People have been asking whether Umno is at fault but the main issue is whether the tape is true or false,” Najib, who is also the Umno president, told reporters after chairing a supreme council meeting on Friday.
“Raising the idea of a conspiracy is shifting the focus from the main issue of whether the recording was genuine."
Never did the PM once mention that such a recording was illegal or the injustice to Anwar if the man was not him.
Nonetheless, PKR leaders said Najib's response was to be expected as he and his wife Rosmah Mansor have been accusesd hatching the ongoing sodomy charges against Anwar. If they could do that, what was the latest sex video to them, reasoned the PKR leaders.
The first couple have also been linked to the murder and corruption case involving Mongolian translator Altantuya Shaariibu and the government's RM6.7 billion acquisition of 2 Scorpene submarines.
"I think Najib has just given himself away. What sort of a man he is is very clear from his comments," PKR vice president Tian Chua told Malaysia Chronicle.
Two PKR leaders, Sungai Petani MP Johari Abdul and Badrul Hisham Shaharin, have seen the video and deny it was Anwar.
“You are not talking about anyone. This is Anwar. He is not only a prominent politician but well known throughout Asia and the West. Definitely, Rahim would have discussed this with the top leaders,” Johari told Malaysia Chronicle.
“Then what about the money. Who is going to bear the cost of this exercise? Impossible for it not to be a conspiracy and Umno leaders don't know about it.”
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