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Nik Aziz seeks clarification from Anwar
KOTA BARU: PAS spiritual leader
Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat will
seek clarification from Parti Keadilan
Rakyat (PKR) adviser Datuk Seri
Anwar Ibrahim on a statement by
DAP chairman Karpal Singh that
Anwar was not fit to lead the Pakatan
Rakyat coalition.
“I do not want to comment on
the matter and want to ask Datuk
Seri Anwar for the actual story,”
By-election test of support
for PR: Khalid
KUALA LUMPUR: Pakatan Rakyat
views the impending Bukit Gantang
by-election as a challenge to prove the
people’s support for the coalition.
The parliamentary seat in Perak
fell vacant following the death of
PAS MP Roslan Shaharum of a heart
attack yesterday.
Speaking to reporters at a Chinese
New Year open house hosted by Bukit
Lanjan assemblyman Elizabeth Wong,
Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Abdul
Khalid Ibrahim said: “This by-election
is a challenge for us to prove the
rakyat’s support for us and that our
victory in the 2008 general election
was no fluke. The wave of support
from the people is there and we want
to prove this to Barisan Nasional.”
“The ball is now with the peo-
ple. I hope the Perak mentri besar
he told reporters after attending a
Chinese New Year function here on
Sunday.
Karpal Singh in a news confer-
ence on Sunday called on Anwar to
quit as PR leader, saying his action
in encouraging party-hopping was
“immoral” and had tarnished the
PR’s image.
Nik Aziz, who is the Kelantan
mentri besar, said the matter had to
– whoever that is – will take heed of
this. Legitimacy is very important, no
point becoming a leader without the
legitimate support of the people.
Commenting on DAP chairman
Karpal Singh’s call for PKR de facto
leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to
step down for having promoted a
party-hopping culture, Khalid said it
was not the policy of PR leaders to
sweep matters under the carpet.
“We are always working hard to
find a common platform. I’m quite
sure even BN has this problem, the
difference is that PR does not hide
the issues, they bring it out into the
open and fight among each other.
“We respect differences, Karpal
has his own personal opinions, we
will discuss this at the next (coalition)
meeting,” he said.
be clarified by Anwar himself.
On the issue of party-hopping,
cooperation between parties in the
PR would not be affected by those
he said such actions were con- views.
temptible and went against the “That’s his view and style. Let
wishes of voters who had chosen it be. He gets angry with everyone.
their candidates. If he does not argue with others,
In Alor Star, Kedah PAS com- he argues with his own people,”
missioner and Mentri Besar Datuk Azizan told reporters when asked to
Seri Azizan Abdul Razak said comment at an awards conferment
Kedah PAS did not take Karpal ceremony in conjunction with the
Singh’s views seriously and that the Sultan of Kedah’s 81st birthday cel-
Subang
Jaya MP R.
Sivarasa,
Wong and
Khalid share
yee sang
with Kepong
residents
at Wong’s
Chinese
New Year
open house
at the Desa
Jaya field
yesterday.
Anwar will remain
Opposition Leader: Guan Eng
GEORGE TOWN: DAP will continue
to support Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)
de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar
Ibrahim as parliamentary Opposition
Leader, its secretary-general Lim
Guan Eng said.
He said Anwar would remain
Pakatan Rakyat leader and Opposi-
tion Leader as agreed by the PR
leadership.
“He will remain, as no single leader
has ever questioned this during inter-
nal meetings, whether at the highest
level or otherwise,” Lim said in a state-
ment yesterday, Bernama reported.
Long trail He said the PR had endorsed a
of power position that no individual party policy
could be regarded PR policy unless
grabs it was approved unanimously by all
pg 14 three parties in the coalition.
Lim also appealed to DAP chair-
man Karpal Singh to use internal
party channels instead of the media
if he wished to change policies within
the PR.
On Sunday, Karpal Singh told a
news conference that Anwar was not
fit to lead the PR and that he had been
“nothing but trouble” for the opposi-
tion alliance.
In Petaling Jaya, veteran DAP leader
Lim Kit Siang said party members
should resolve their problems by means
of internal channels and not deflect
efforts to resolve national crises.
“Let the DAP resolve any differ-
ences internally as they should not be
allowed to deflect efforts to resolve both
the grave economic and political crises
confronting Malaysians,” said Lim,
who also said he was “shocked and
hurt” at Karpal Singh’s statements.
Himanshu Bhatt reports from
Penang that younger generation lead-
ers in the PR insist their relationship
would not be affected by DAP chair-
man Karpal Singh’s outburst against
Anwar.
Youth leaders from PKR, PAS
and DAP have called for moderation
| TUESDAY FEBRUARY 10 2009
ebration at Istana Anak Bukit near
here yesterday.
On Karpal Singh’s intention
to sue Perak’s Sultan Azlan Shah,
and the new Barisan Nasional
state government following the
removal of Datuk Seri Moham-
mad Nizar Jamaluddin as mentri
besar, he asked: “Is filing a case
(against the Sultan) treacherous?” –
Bernama
between the parties, saying the mis-
sion to reform politics and govern-
ment must remain paramount, above
erstwhile differences.
Penang PKR youth chief Yusmadi
Mohd Yusoff said the younger genera-
tion did not carry the “baggage of the
past”. He said interaction between
Pakatan youth is vibrant, especially
in coordinating relevant programmes
together.
“We are focused on creating better
opposition politics in the country. We
are not burdened by the baggage of
the past,” Yusmadi, who is also Balik
Pulau MP, said when contacted.
“Karpal is free to give his opinion,
but what matters most is the bigger
picture of the reform agenda in the
country.”
He said Karpal Singh had per-
formed his part in ushering in political
transformation, and should now let
the younger generation take over.
“Karpal Singh has done his job. He
should now pass the torch to young
leaders in DAP and PR.”
Penang PAS deputy commissioner
and Parit Buntar MP Mujahid Yusuf
Rawa said Karpal Singh’s views
were his own and did not reflect the
sentiments of most of the coalition’s
members.
“I don’t know if Karpal’s statement
represents the DAP stand,” he said. “It
certainly does not represent the spirit
behind Pakatan.”
On Karpal Singh’s statement that
Anwar may have picked up his con-
tentious policy to lure party hoppers
from his days in the Barisan Nasional,
Mujahid said the opinion was based
on events of the past.
“Such debates are mainly among
the older generation who still bear
whatever stigma of the past. Our
generation is more keen on activating
future reforms. We would like to give
more priority to the struggle to see a
new political landscape.”