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The Rise and Rise of Nurul Izzah bt Anwar, MP for Lembah Pantai

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On how the allegations are affecting PKR, a source close to the accuser said that many in the party are growing tired of the accusations levelled against its leadership.

Free Malaysia Today

A move in PKR to oust Anwar’s dynasty?

A former aide of PKR women chief Zuraida Kamaruddin had allegedly written a letter to the PAS president, urging the latter to pressure PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail to step down.

PETALING JAYA: A handwritten letter published on Malaysia Today website yesterday suggests that there is a move in PKR to oust its supremo Anwar Ibrahim’s family before the general election.

Claiming to be PKR women chief Zuraida Kamaruddin’s former political secretary, Mohd Fareez Kamal Intidzam, 24, urged PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang to save the opposition pact from PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and its vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar.

Fareez alleged that Wan Azizah and Nurul wanted to destroy his career as he was “close” to Anwar.

He also claimed to be working for Anwar as his private secretary for international affairs since 2008.

A move in PKR to oust Anwar’s dynasty?

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The magician spellbinds his audience

Love him or loathe him. The undeniable fact is that when given a microphone, Anwar Ibrahim transforms into a magician. And in Shah Alam last night, he cast a spell on the crowd.

SHAH ALAM: Business was roaring at the Nasi Kandar restaurant. Its waiters, unaccustomed to such large crowds, appeared flustered.
………

Umbrellas, newspapers and plastic bags shielded the crowd from the droplets. The people had gathered for two reasons – Anwar Ibrahim and S Ambiga.

Ambiga arrives!

When it was announced that Ambiga had arrived, the predominantly Malaysian Indian crowd surged forward to catch a closer glimpse of the woman responsible for the two mammoth rallies that rattled the Najib administration…

… the crowd mobbed her as she left, hugging her, shaking her hand and posing for photographs.
……….

‘Here comes the seventh prime minister’

But the night belonged to Anwar.

As soon as the emcee announced the arrival of the nation’s “seventh prime minister”, the crowd erupted into a thunderous cheer and a famous old Tamil song started blaring.

The song “Naan Annai Yittal” was from a MGR movie and spoke of how the hero would end the suffering of the poor.
……….

Whether or not the applause and roars of support turn into votes in the coming general election, one thing was certain. Anwar gave the people of Sri Muda a night to remember, one that was bound to crop up during the coffeeshop talks there for weeks to come.

And that is the magic touch of this man.

The magician spellbinds his audience

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“In fact, I have nothing to do (with it). The only statement that I issued was to ask them (the government) to explain why our borders are so porous, (and) why they took so long (to take action), as I think the security of Malaysia cannot be compromised.”

Malaysiakini

I’ve nothing to do with Lahad Datu, decries Anwar

Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim has strongly disclaimed allegations that he played a role in the Lahad Datu intrusion by a group of Sulu gunmen which resulted in 14 killed on Friday, including two police officers.

Visibly upset, Anwar said last night he had instructed his lawyers to initiate legal action against two Umno-linked media organisations – TV3 and Utusan Malaysia – over the accusations.

When asked by journalists if he had ever met with any member of the Sulu sultanate, leading them to stake a claim on Sabah or intrude into the country’s borders, Anwar replied, “No, no.”

“(And) even if I have met (them), what is the issue? Who in the government has not met Moro Islamic Liberation Front leader Al Haj Murad Ebrahim or (Moro National Liberation Front leader) Nor Misuari?” he asked, after addressing the crowd at a ceramah in Seberang Jaya, Penang.

I’ve nothing to do with Lahad Datu, decries Anwar

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LOOKING TO BLAME ANWAR IBRAHIM!

Bernama today also cited an unnamed report quoting a Philippine army personnel, “who is a loyal follower of Sulu raja muda, Azzimudie Kiram, as saying the group has come at the invitation of a ‘Malaysian opposition’ to discuss land issues in Sabah”.

Malaysiakini

Mainstream media reports have linked the Philippine intrusion in Lahad Datu with the opposition, in particular PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim.

Umno-owned daily Utusan Malaysia today carried the report, citing the blog MPP Online quoting Philippine media Inquirer News.

“A Philippine news portal Inquirer News has exposed that a top opposition leader in Sabah who is close to (opposition leader) Anwar had met with the insurgents offering his support for the group presently in Sabah.

Mainstream media drags Anwar into Lahad Datu fiasco

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According to Trevino’s belated federal filing, the interests paying Trevino were in fact the government of Malaysia, “its ruling party or interests closely aligned with either”, Buzzfeed reported.

The news site highlighted the writer telling the influential US website Politico previously in 2011 that “I was never on any ‘Malaysian entity’s payroll,’ and I resent your assumption that I was” following allegations he had hidden his business relationship with Malaysian political interests.

Malaysian Insider

——–

Malaysian Insider

Putrajaya’s media strategist funded anti-Anwar campaign, US filings show

By Debra Chong
Assistant News Editor
March 02, 2013

KUALA LUMPUR, March 2 — Putrajaya’s media strategist APCO Worldwide covertly financed international media reports in a campaign against Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim after Election 2008, filings to the United States Department of Justice this week revealed.

Widely-read New York-based news portal Buzzfeed Politics reported yesterday that media outlets from Huffington Post and Washington Times to San Francisco Examiner and National Review carried several articles by right-wing American writers, most notably Joshua Trevino, who had been engaged by global publicity firm APCO Worldwide.

Anwar was the target in articles by right-wing American writers.Trevino, who was last year sacked as the US correspondent for British paper The Guardian over a news-fixing scandal linked to Putrajaya, was reported to have declared earning US$389,724.70 (RM1.2 million), in a belated filing to the US Justice Department under its Foreign Agent Registration Act earlier this week, for a contracted campaign that spanned from May 2008 to April 2011.

Putrajaya’s media strategist funded anti-Anwar campaign, US filings show

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Free Malaysia Today

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Malaysiakini

PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim has denied that he is bisexual or homosexual, saying the allegations are Umno propaganda.

“I am happily married with six children,” he said when pressed during an interview with commercial radio station BFM, according to podcast uploaded on its official website this morning.

“There are liberal voters among us who can accept a PM even if he is a homosexual or bisexual, but this is not acceptable by the more conservative Muslims. Are you a homosexual or bisexual?” asked the interviewer.
…………

“Of course, it’s very clear (that I am not),” he shot back when repeatedly pressed for an answer

The interview on the Klang Valley business radio station was originally intended to be aired on its free to air radio channel 89.9. The station however expected the Multimedia and Communications Commission (MCMC) would ultimately reject it, based on past experience.

“We are required by MCMC, our regulators, to inform them of all our interviews in advance.

“Although, in our view, this interview does not breach any provisions of the (Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, CMA) or the Content Code, from our past experience, it was most likely that this interview would have been rejected for broadcasting.

I am neither homosexual nor bisexual, says Anwar

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Anwar disambut lebih meriah di majlis Dong Zong

Published on Feb 17, 2013

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http://youtu.be/agcdj9kTnPc

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Free Malaysia Today

Shoring up Chinese support for Pakatan

The PKR de facto leader attended five Chinese New Year open houses in the span of 12 hours and got a warm reception.

KUALA LUMPUR: Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim made a whirlwind tour of five Chinese New Year open houses here today – and received a resounding “Yes” from the people who are ready for Pakatan Rakyat.

Hundreds of people who gathered at the Batu PKR Chinese New Year open houses gave the de facto PKR leader an enthusiastic reception.
………….

However, Anwar’s lightning visit to the open houses indicates that he is not too sure of Chinese support towards Pakatan.

In a span of 12 hours, Anwar visited Bandar Tun Razak, Sri Rampai, Wangsa Maju, Batu, Bangsar and Setiawangsa – all for Chinese New Year open houses organised by local PKR offices.

Why would Anwar spent so much time and effort wooing the Chinese when all the areas, except Setiawangsa, were already won by PKR in 2008?

Perhaps it has to do with the fact that PKR had only won once in the areas, and it could not claim to have the upper hand in the coming general election.
………..

Hence, Anwar’s move to visit the areas today was to reinforce Chinese support to ensure a Pakatan victory in the 13th general election which must be called by April.

Chinese voters made up 23% of the total voters in Lembah Pantai, 31% in Setiawangsa, 38% in Batu, 36% in Wangsa Maju and 39% in Bandar Tun Razak. Their support would certainly affect the outcome of the election in these areas.

Judging from the huge support for Anwar today, it appears that the anti-establishment sentiment is still running high among the Chinese community. But can the resounding “Yes” to Anwar be translated into votes for Pakatan?

Shoring up Chinese support for Pakatan

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Free Malaysia Today

The renaissance man of Malaysia

Anwar is now leading the Malay and non-Malay spectrum of voters while Mahathir is reviled for numerous economic and social misgivings.

Knowing the Barisan National culture, would it not have been easier for Anwar Ibrahim to have joined the ruling coalition after his release in 2004? Instead, Anwar opted to face the BN’s brutal force in full brunt!

………….

Anwar’s second birth

Now, the role has completely reversed, with Anwar leading the Malay and non-Malay spectrum of voters while Mahathir is reviled for numerous economic and social misgivings.

Anwar has, since his release from jail and behind bars altogether, insisted he wanted change in Malaysia.
………..

Anwar is, in effect, the renaissance man of Malaysia. Leading the opposition to greater gains in electoral battles and pressuring the ruling coalition to correct its path time and again, are signs that he is the chosen one.

This time, he is not Mahathir’s chosen replacement.

He is, de-facto, the PM to be of Malaysia and this is the direct result of the 66% majority vote he won at the Permatang Pauh parliamentary by-elections in 2008.

It is the choice by the people, that propelled Anwar to the post of leader of the opposition, for the people and by the people.

Ali Cordoba writes extensively on local politics.

The renaissance man of Malaysia

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Malaysiakini

‘Najib is a weak leader with bad advisers’

Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim drove home a single message at his ceramah in Penang last night – that premier Najib Abdul Razak is a “weak leader surrounded by bad advisers”.

Backing his claim, he noted that Najib has failed to speak up on many issues that have affected the interests and rights of Malaysians.

This included the threat by Malay rights group Perkasa to burn the Malay-language Bible which contains the word ‘Allah’, much to the alarm of Christians.

Anwar scolded Umno for keeping mum, also asking: “… Did Najib ever tell them not to do it? Was there even one word from Najib to say this is wrong? What’s wrong with you?

“Are you a PM who can only bring Psy (to perform in Penang)? A PM must lead, and must make difficult decisions.

“If I am given the mandate to lead, I do not care if you are Malay, Chinese, Indian, or Dayak. If you are extreme, I will say ‘No, this country is our country and all Malaysians have a right to this land’.”

‘Najib is a weak leader with bad advisers’

—–

Najib, a scripted politician more than an intuitive one, persisted with the second question, despite drawing repeat rebuffs that were captured on video.

Malaysiakini

What was expected to be an entertainment coup for Penang BN when they secured Korean K-Pop sensation Psy for their Chinese New Year bash has turned out to be a public relations fiasco.

“Are you ready …?” – the beginnings of a line unwittingly gifted to Pakatan Rakyat by Prime Minister Najib Razak’s misreading of the reaction of the Penang crowd at the BN’s CNY gathering has become a juicy attack weapon for opposition campaigners.

Najib was rebuffed with a “No” all three times he posed the question “Are you ready for BN?” to the crowd of Penangites at Monday’s BN’s do at Han Chiang High School.

The PM must have been expecting an easy switch as he segued from his first question to the crowd “Are you ready for Psy?” – to which the crowd’s response was “Yes” – to “Are you ready for BN?” – at which the same crowd responded with a “No”.

Pakatan exploits Najib’s gaffe to the hilt

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Malaysia 007 – LISTEN to the People! [大马007] (中文字幕/English Subtitled)

http://youtu.be/_JEQGwVwea8

Published on Feb 4, 2013

TRUTH MUST BE KNOWN TO ALL MALAYSIANS!

Please SHARE and spread this very IMPORTANT video around so that more people could see the truth from lies before GE13!
LIKE it to show your support in the democratic movement of Malaysia.

大马007 – LISTEN人民的声音！
马来西亚人必了解的真相大全，看过者请赞/分享以展示人民的力量。
第13届全国大选，让我们改朝换代 ，让民主的福音降临大马- UBAH！

Speaker: Anwar Ibrahim (Agent Ubah: Malaysia 007)
Speech Source: MediaRakyat (http://www.youtube.com/user/mediarakyat)
Ubah – Lagu Tema Kempen DAP Pilihanraya ke-13 by videoDAP (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SG4kSalvAB0)
Listen Remix by YuriWongMusic: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xL25dpv_cg0)

Creator / Editor / English Subtitles / 中文字幕: Ray Chong
http://www.facebook.com/MyNameisRayChong

Please join me in the movement of enlightenment by subscribing to my Facebook Page and Youtube Channel for future update!

Open your eyes, and tell the truths from lies.
UBAH, selamatkan Malaysia!

________________________________________________________________

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Malaysiakini

Hazlan Zakaria 11:56AM Sep 29, 2012

In a bid to sweeten the deal for their supporters and coax them into parting with more hard-earned cash to steam Pakatan’s push for Putrajaya in the imminent General Election, senior coalition leaders each gave up a “prized possession” in an auction at the coalition’s fundraising do last night.

Some auction items
1 PKR president Wan Azizah Wan Ismail put up for bidding something close to her heart, a love letter from her husband and PKR de-facto leader Anwar Ibrahim to her from the time he was in prison which details some of the ordeal her husband, and by extension herself and her family had to bear when he was “a guest” of the government in prison. The letter fetched RM50,000.

2 Lim Guan Eng: The writing implement he used to write love letters to his wife and corresponding with other family members while “on holiday” in Kajang prison went for RM23,000.

Wan Azizah auctions hubby’s love letter for RM50,000

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“We are going to make higher education free, but we are going to push our universities to train students better than they have done in the recent past.

“For that we have to institute meritocracy in the selection of people to teach and administer our universities. Race is not going to be the only criterion for selection,” he said.

Malaysiakini

Terence Netto 11:03AM Sep 26, 2012

COMMENT It was vintage Anwar Ibrahim as the opposition leader took on blunt if not brusque questions at the Royal Selangor Club’s Fifth Presidential Luncheon Talk yesterday.

The series, inaugurated last January by Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak as the first speaker, has become a focal point of interest to the prestigious club’s 6,000-plus members who like to think of themselves as the Klang Valley’s movers and shakers.

The view was given pith and moment by Anwar’s performance before a full house that was apt to temper admiration for his courage with scepticism about his capacity for the office of prime minister and/or his ability to weld a cohesive coalition from ideologically divergent partners.
…………
More than anything else, the 350 diners – another hundred were purportedly on a waiting list – wanted to gauge for their selves if the popular appeal of this vaunted Piped Piper of political reform in Malaysia owed more to alternative media-generated shimmer than to actual substance.

His answers blew their qualms away.

“I cannot absolve myself of all that happened when I was part of Umno and the government,” parried Anwar, who between 1982 and 1998 rose from ordinary member to the party’s No 2 position, and from deputy minister to deputy prime minister, before being sacked and jailed on dubious charges of corruption, abuse of power and sodomy.

“I have paid the price,” he asserted, in obvious reference to the travails he has had to endure since his expulsion from Umno in 1998.
…………..
When Anwar had finished reeling off the agenda for political and social change in Malaysia, it was clear that what he envisaged for the continent in his Asian Renaissance treatise 16 years ago he intends to achieve for his country when the coalition he leads wins the “comfortable majority” which he, these days, confidently predicts will be its lot at the 13th general election.

At the end of his talk yesterday, the standing ovation Anwar received may have been perfunctory, but the perception that spectral doubts about the mettle of his leadership had been erased, or, at least, elided, was palpable.

One attendee summed up the affair: “A vintage performance by the man.”

TERENCE NETTO has been a journalist for close on four decades. He likes the occupation because it puts him in contact with the eminent without being under the necessity to admire them. It is the ideal occupation for a temperament that finds power fascinating and its exercise abhorrent.

Vintage Anwar at prestige club’s ‘do’

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Malaysiakini

Terence Netto 10:27AM Sep 25, 2012

The 350 seats to the luncheon were taken up within three days of the posters publicising the event going up at the prestigious club.

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak  184 (RM50 for members, RM80 for guests)
Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah                  148 (RM50 for members, RM80 for guests)
Musa Hitam                                                190 (RM50 for members, RM80 for guests)
Lim Guan Eng                                            275 (RM80 for members. RM100 for guests)
Anwar Ibrahim                                          350 (RM80 for members. RM100 for guests)
(There are 100 on the waiting list for Anwar Ibrahim’s talk)

The raised rates have been retained for Anwar’s talk which at its draw of 350 diners is a smash because he had asked for a Sept 6 date, but was told by the club that they needed more time to publicise the event.

In the event, the club did not need the extra time to herald the talk. It could have been held at Anwar’s requested early date. Seats were sold out within 72 hours of the posters going up – and that was in the first week of September.

Anwar to address sellout crowd at Royal Selangor Club

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Sinchew

If Anwar retires

If Anwar retires

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Malaysiakini

12:28PM Aug 22, 2012

Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has compared Pakatan Rakyat leader Anwar Ibrahim to current United States President Barack Obama for promising big changes but failing to keep them.

He said Anwar’s electoral campaign was similar to Obama’s (right) – promising the rakyat many changes but with no guarantee of realising them.

Hence he urged the people to support BN.

“Better the devil you know than the angel you don’t,” he wrote in his blog, Che Det, earlier today.

“The BN has listened to the people and has changed many laws and policies. All the people need to do is to urge the BN to carry out whatever change the people desire,” Mahathir said.

The former premier said it would be dangerous to give the opposition party a trial as government for five years, since much damage could be done during that period of time.

“Many things can be destroyed in five years. Besides, the opposition as government will ensure there will be no return for BN. Officers in the government will be used to threaten whoever tries to change the government,” he explained.

Mahathir: Anwar is as bad as Obama

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Malaysian Insider

BUTTERWORTH, Aug 20 — PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today confirmed he will defend his Permatang Pauh constituency at the next general election.

Speaking at a Hari Raya Aidilfitri open house at the Guar Perahu PKR service centre here, he said, “There’s no confirmation of who’s going to contest in which state assembly or parliament seat, except for my confirmed contesting in Permatang Pauh.”

Anwar says will defend Permatang Pauh seat

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Free Nalaysia Today

‘Anwar not making sense’

Questions have popped up following Anwar Ibrahim’s responses during a live chat ‘Borak Bersama Anwar’ on Google Hangout on Friday.

KOTA KINABALU: What is the point of putting in place policies to check political saboteurs from within the Barisan Nasional “defectors”?

Why is PKR vis-à-vis  Pakatan Rakyat even entertaining these defectors who have a history of being Trojan horses?

How can these defecting leaders who are the very reason Sabah politics is in its current state be Pakatan’s solution to wresting Putrajaya in the 13th general election?

“It makes no sense… how can the problem [of defectors] be the solution for Sabah ” was the immediate response of a political analyst in reaction to Anwar Ibrahim’s live chat on “Borak Bersama Anwar” [Chat with Anwar ] on Google Hangout on Friday night.

During the interview, Anwar attempted to allay prevailing fears that his strategy of accepting Umno-BN defectors would make Pakatan  vis-à-vis PKR no different from Umno-BN when it wrests Putrajaya.

He said: “To me, whether you are ex-Umno, ex-NGO, ex-MCA… it is immaterial.

“You must come in to accept a new culture in our political life, you must accept the new agenda… You must accept the Buku Jingga.

“These are clear policies which require transparency, a very powerful anti-corruption commission and independent judiciary.

“With these institutions in place, I frankly do not worry about individuals who may have the pension and venture to embark on policies that would be deemed to be dangerous or would sabotage the reform programme.”

(The value of the recent defections of Barisan Nasional MPs Lajim Ukin [Beaufort], Wilfred Bumburing [Tuaran] and former Upko senator Majpol Majpai has been hotly debated and has put under scrutiny PKR, DAP and PAS’ stand on party-hopping. DAP and PAS have in the past said that they would not sanction such defections.)

Meanwhile, the analyst, who declined to be named, was unimpressed by Anwar’s responses and asked exactly what “new culture” Anwar was talking about.

‘I assume he is referring to the defections… that’s how Umno brought down PBS in 1984 and Perak after 2008.

“He [Anwar] thinks Sabahans are stupid… reform had a meaning in 1999, now it’s just Putrajaya by any means… he’s admitted it.

‘He said Umno had severely embarrassed… he wants vengeance… it’s not reform or Sabah rights” the analyst said.

History retold

Sabahans, the analyst said, remembered the role Anwar played in the 1980s and 1990s in “destroying” Sabah.

He said while the history books may not have recorded the political subterfuge that eventually saw Sabah’s Christian population being nuetralised and its leadership ousted, the scar was deep and “twisted-tongue Anwar must not be trusted”.

He believed that Anwar backed by former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad – who authored the once banned book Malay Dilemma and who coined Ketuanan Melayu – was responsible for PBS’s downfall in 1994 and the mass legalising of Muslim immigrants from the Philippines and Indonesia.

‘Anwar not making sense’

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Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 18 — Malaysia is unlikely to follow a caliphate system of government any time soon but will stay a democracy that recognises the rights of non-Muslims, Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said last night in a bid to sooth a fevered public as debate continues to rage over the set up of a Islamic state in the run-up to key elections.

The controversy erupted after an Umno politician in Johor mooted for hudud, the Islamic penal code, to be implemented nationwide and to cover both Muslims and non-Muslims; prompting several religious conservatives of the faith to question PAS’s commitment to an Islamic state and driving a wedge between the opposition Islamist party and its secular ally, the DAP.

“There are those who say because the Muslim ummah is… a single entity, therefore there should be one ruler,” Anwar, who leads the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) opposition pact, said in his Google Hangout session called “Borak Bersama Anwar (Chat with Anwar)” late last night.

But the PKR de facto head said current realities did not allow Malaysia to follow a caliphate system where the government is based on Islamic religious law or syariah.

“If we look at Malaysia, while the Muslims are the majority (and) Islam is the religion of the federation, the existence and rights of non-Muslims must be taken into account and recognised,” he said in reply to a question over Google+ from Internet user Mohamad Fairul Hamikey on Google+ who wanted to know if a caliphate system could be used here.

Anwar: Malaysia will keep to democracy, not caliphate

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Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 17 ― Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s live Google Hangout event tonight will be a chance for the federal opposition leader to showcase his ability to answer “uncomfortable” questions from the public, his party PKR said today, pointing out that it expects him to face a tough time from the public.

Anwar will be “the first Malaysian and Southeast Asian politician to be featured on a Google Hangout on Air event,” PKR’s communications director Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad told reporters.

Praba Ganesan, the party’s social media strategist, said that other Southeast Asian leaders have not had similar online forums yet “because it’s direct engagement and it puts leaders in the hot seat”.

He also said “not many leaders can deal with direct questioning and uncomfortable questioning”, adding that Pakatan Rakyat (PR) was looking forward to “changing the culture of engagement in the country.”

Anwar faces tough, ‘uncomfortable’ questions on Google Hangout, says PKR

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Malaysiakini

Terence Netto 10:25AM Aug 20, 2012

COMMENT Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim has reiterated his intention to quit should Pakatan Rakyat not win the 13th general election.

A few weeks ago, he aired for the first time his intention to retreat to academia should Pakatan not win GE13. The other day, he again voiced his intention to quit if Pakatan fails to gain Putrajaya at the elections.

Implausible the first time he gave vent to it, the repetition of intention to quit, upon failure to oust BN, has not rendered it less so.

In fact, after the second instance of its airing, it is easier to visualise how this quit charade of Anwar’s would pan out.

Should Pakatan not win the general election, a wearied Anwar would follow through on his quit intention, probably offering the rationale that his withdrawal would provide second string leaders in his party, PKR, especially, a chance to step up to the plate.

Anwar would then go off to recharge his batteries at some fairly prestigious university where he would teach a course on Third World development strategies besides making a stab at writing his memoirs.

A few years down the road, the second stringers, after doing a fairly good job of manning the opposition fort, would clamour for Anwar’s return to the arena in preparation for the 14th general election on the grounds that the man is indispensable to the opposition’s cause.

In deference to the ‘people’s will’, Anwar would return to attempt another sortie for the top prize – that of being prime minister of Malaysia, something he has had his mind focused on from the time he was in his teens.

Spurious stratagem

The 65-year-old Anwar’s reiteration that he would quit should Pakatan not win the next GE is a psychological ploy to jolt voters to back the coalition he leads to victory or risk losing him to academic life.

It is a spurious stratagem that Anwar should not want to deploy because it trivialises the reformasi agenda by unduly personalising it and renders the serious business of credibly supplanting Umno-BN at the helm of government dependent on individual volition and temperament rather than collective will and struggle.

No doubt, Anwar is bone-weary and mentally fatigued from the brutal demands of an intensive five-year campaign to unseat Umno-BN.

In the last six months, he has aged more rapidly than in the previous four years.

It was always going to be a Herculean task to weld an opposition coalition of ideologically disparate partners together and get them to wage a battle of attrition against Umno-BN.

In the process, he has had to weather relentless threats and attacks to his personal liberty and probity by the Umno apparatus of state power. Those attacks have not stopped; indeed they are intensifying.

———–

If Pakatan’s residency rights to Putrajaya aren’t conferred on them at the GE13, would it be difficult to envision that the electorate would not then have allowed Pakatan to run BN so close that the consequent fallout on a narrowly returned ruling coalition would be so fissiparous that it would disintegrate?

In these straits, it’s not hard to visualise a scenario where crossovers would occur from BN to Pakatan, not a good way to make a government but then nobody seriously disputes the pragmatic truth that political goals are only achievable upon the acquisition of power.

Hence Anwar’s repetition of his intention to quit should Pakatan not make it to Putrajaya after GE13 is a decision that smacks more of tactical maneuvering than it is a reflection of considered judgment.

Except for PAS spiritual leader Nik Aiz Nik Mat – who has publicly aired his demurral over it – nobody among the Pakatan leadership cohort has seen it fit to remark substantively on the announcement.

Perhaps they are adept at recognising a psychological ploy when they see one, particularly when deployed by one from their side of the political divide.

TERENCE NETTO has been a journalist for close on four decades. He likes the occupation because it puts him in contact with the eminent without being under the necessity to admire them. It is the ideal occupation for a temperament that finds power fascinating and its exercise abhorrent.

Anwar to quit after GE13: A psychological ploy

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FAKE MESSAGE ON ANWAR IBRAHIM’S BLOG

A transcript of the fake message read as follows:

Assalamualaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh & Salam Kesejahteraan. Alhamdulillah kita sedang memasuki fasa terakhir bulan puasa di mana kita akan bergembira kerana beroleh kemenangan pada Hari Raya Aidil Fitri. Pada tahun ini, saya dan keluarga ingin mengambil kesempatan memohon ampun dan maaf, dari hujung kaki ke hujung rambut, khususnya kepada YAB Dato’ Sri Mohd. Najib Tun Razak dan Datin Seri Rosmah Mansur yang saya sebenarnya sangat kenal rapat baik orangnya.

Saya sebenarnya merasa sugul dan berdosa dengan keterlampauan beberapa pihak dalam pasukan kita, di mana dalam usaha kita mengejar kedudukan dan jawatan Perdana Menteri, kita telah jauh pergi hingga memfitnah Datuk Seri Najib dan keluarganya. Saya ingin mengajak rakan-rakan saya dan jentera pakatan supaya membuat perubahan dengan menghormati institusi kePerdana Menterian yang sekian lama kita warisi. Jawatan Perdana Menteri adalah khas untuk orang Melayu dan Islam sahaja, bukannya untuk bangsa lain.

Kepada umat Islam di Malaysia, saya turut ingin memohon maaf atas keterlanjuran saya menyokong Israel tempoh hari. Sesungguhnya saya
tidak mampu untuk menghalang kehadiran mereka dalam hidup saya, maka dalam keterpaksaan saya perlu mengikuti kemahuan, desakan dan asakan bertubi-tubi mereka.

Sebenarnya saya turut mendapat maklumat yang salah berkenaan kes Altantunya. Saya akui maklumat itu belum boleh disahkan. Dalam hal
Bersih 3.0, saya sangat-sangat menyesal kerana melibatkan kerosakan keharmonian negara. Sebenarnya, saya tidak pernah bersetuju secara
peribadi hal-hal yang sedemikian, melainkan desakan rakan-rakan bukan Islam dalam pakatan. Sebagai Ketua, saya perlu adil kepada semua dan memenuhi segala keinginan mereka walaupun ianya sebenarnya bertentangan dengan kehendak saya. PRU13 akan menjelang tidak berapa lama lagi, sekiranya saya tewas kali ini, saya akan kembali ke Amerika Syarikat dan kembali mengajar di universiti di sana. Kepada rakyat Malaysia, saya akui Datuk Seri Najib adalah seorang pemimpin dan pentadbir yang paling sesuai untuk rakyat Malaysia.

“SEBANGSA SEJIWA SENEGARA”
Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri & Selamat Menyambut Hari Kemerdekaan Ke-55 Tahun

Anwar Ibrahim,
Ketua Umum,
Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)
18 Ogos 2012.

Blog posting: It’s Umno’s work, says the real Anwar

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Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 20 — Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin will lodge a police report today over a controversial posting on the political wing’s Facebook page that has sparked a public uproar over its provocative religious message in the run-up to national polls.

The Rembau MP took to Twitter to distance the wing from the controversy after it was reported by The Malaysian Insider yesterday, the start of the Muslim holiday Aidilfitri.

“Yes, not our FB page,” he said in a reply to a follower on his Twitter account ‏@Khairykj.

“Update: We have narrowed down the admin of the unsanctioned Pemuda UMNO FB page w/ offensive post. We will lodge a police report tomorrow,” Khairyadded.

He did not disclose the identity of the administrator or any further information.

Umno Youth denies provocative religious Facebook post, to file police report

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Free Malaysia Today

Blog posting: It’s Umno’s work, says the real Anwar

Minutes after Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim ended a live chat with the public on Google, hackers posted a message on his blog with an apology to Najib Tun Razak about his ‘transgressions’

KUALA LUMPUR: A strange ‘Hari Raya apology message’  from Anwar Ibrahim to Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak posted in the former’s blog last night was apparently the work of hackers.  The Opposition Leader confirmed today that it did not originate from him.

Anwar, who is PKR de facto leader, this morning clarified on his Twitter account @anwaribrahim, saying:“Puak umno godam blog dan fitnah! (Umno tribe hacked blog and defame!)” when he was asked if the special Hari Raya Aidilfitri message was genuine.

The hacking appears to be the second cyber assault against Anwar, the first being a fake Twitter account and the latest apparently happened
soon after Anwar ended a Google Hangout live chat which was broadcast live till 11.30pm last night.

Blog posting: It’s Umno’s work, says the real Anwar

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Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 18 — Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s blog was hacked late last night and defaced with a fake post that portrayed him as an apologist for the Zionist regime in Israel.

It also included an apology to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak as part of the opposition leader’s message ahead of the Aidilfitri celebration tomorrow.

The de facto PKR head has accused cybertroopers from political foe Umno of mounting the assault on his blog in a bid to defame him and destroy his credibility among Netizens, minutes after the opposition leader ended an Internet live chat session on Google Hangout.

Screen capture of the fake post on Anwar’s blog.

“Puak umno godam blog dan fitnah! (Umno tribe hacked blog and defame!)” Anwar posted in his Twitter account ‏@anwaribrahim early this morning, in reply to another user on the social microblogging site identified as @anuarazizi who wanted to know if the apology in the special message was true.

The allegedly defamatory post by anonymous hackers has since been removed from Anwar’s blog.

In its place is a message from the website administrator informing visitors that the blog was hacked at about 11.50pm and a fake post about a “special message” attributed to Anwar had been uploaded.

“We understand a screen capture of the posting had been successfully recorded and is now being spread by Umno cybertroopers with the intention to discredit and defame Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim,” the blog administrator said.

……….

Anwar’s blog hacked, portrayed as Israel apologist

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Malaysiakini

12:32PM Aug 18, 2012

………….

An online transcript of the message read as follows:

“This year, I and my family would like to take this opportunity to apologise – from head to toe – particularly to Najib Abdul Razak and Rosmah Mansor whom I actually know well and are close to.

“I feel that I have sinned because of certain people in my team who have gone overboard in our ambition to pursue positions including the prime ministership, we have slandered Najib and his family”.

In the fake message ‘Anwar’ also apologised to Muslims his supposed support for Israel and the Bersih 3.0 rally, which it said had “damaged national harmony” – both the favourite ammunition of the PKR supremo’s detractors.

“Actually, I have also received wrong information about the Altantuya case. I admit that the information could not be verified,” the fake message continued.

The hacker, who signed off as ‘Anwar Ibrahim’ added that privately, he did not agree with such attacks or actions but had done so due to pressure from non-Muslims partners in Pakatan Rakyat.

Hacker makes Anwar ‘apologise’ to Najib

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Message in Anwar Ibrahim’s hacked blog

Malay daily Sinar Harian reported that the hackers had uploaded a message from Anwar, claiming he felt ashamed for his party’s “sinful extremist position chasing after the prime minister’s office to the extent of defaming Najib and the latter’s family”.

“Saya ingin mengajak rakan-rakan saya dan jentera pakatan supaya membuat perubahan dengan menghormati institusi kePerdana Menterian yang sekian lama kita warisi. Jawatan Perdana Menteri adalah khas untuk orang Melayu dan Islam sahaja, bukannya untuk bangsa lain. (I would like to invite my colleagues and the Pakatan machinery to make changes by respecting the prime ministerial institution that we have long inherited. The post of the Prime Minister is special to the Malays and Muslims only, not for any other race),” hackers had uploaded on Anwar’s blog.

“Kepada umat Islam di Malaysia, saya turut ingin memohon maaf atas keterlanjuran saya menyokong Israel tempoh hari. Sesungguhnya saya tidak mampu untuk menghalang kehadiran mereka dalam hidup saya, maka dalam keterpaksaan saya perlu mengikuti kemahuan, desakan dan asakan bertubi-tubi mereka. (To Muslims in Malaysia, I also apologise for going overboard in my support of Israel the other day. Truly I am unable to prevent their presence in my life, therefore I am obligated to follow their wishes and repeated pressures.)

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