‘Anwar, hudud bad for Pakatan’
The hudud spat and Anwar’s craze for power is breaking Pakatan Rakyat apart, claims Kita chief Zaid Ibrahim.
(Free Malaysia Today) – Pakatan Rakyat is breaking apart over the hudud law issue and there is nothing that its leader Anwar Ibrahim can do about it, Kita president Zaid Ibrahim said.
“The opposition is woefully fractured, with a leader who has lost the plot and is behaving like a headless chicken roaming the political landscape. DAP remains speechless on the hudud issue, as is the so-called multi-racial party of PKR.
“All reform-minded and peace-loving Malaysians… are asking if Anwar (Ibrahim) truly is the ‘Renaissance man’ he would like us to believe he is, or if he is actually a closet Islamic fundamentalist,” he said.
Zaid was referring to the hudud uproar that erupted within Pakatan following a dare by former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Last week, Mahathir dared the PAS-ruled Kelantan to impose hudud, with Anwar voicing his support for the Islamic law.
Since then, DAP leaders have opposed the idea, adding that the law was not suitable for Malaysia.
Zaid said PAS’ stance on the law, once shelved for not gaining political traction, was brought back after the Islamic party was supposedly done with its “consensus politics” within Pakatan.
“The colour of the tide has turned a familiar shade of dark green,” he said, referring to the PAS’ logo. “And self-righteous political rhetoric proclaiming to also be God’s work has taken centre stage once again.”
This did not help Pakatan’s chances, Zaid said, given Anwar’s past with Umno and the Malaysian Islamic Youth Front (Abim).
“Anwar was never a reformer… he was instrumental in changing the education in Malaysia by injecting so-called Arabic ideas into the system and dress code,” he said.
Zaid added that Anwar’s pushing for a constitutional amendment by putting the civil and the Islamic syariah courts on an equal legal standing did not make it easier for the judiciary.
He also reminded Malaysians that Anwar was part of the Cabinet that removed Lord President Salleh Abas from heading the then Supreme Court of Malaysia, and that he was a firm supporter of the Internal Security Act as well as preventive detention.