Najib confirms pact with Anwar unsigned, but committed to reconciliation
(TMI) – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has confirmed that he did not sign the now-infamous reconciliation agreement with Pakatan Rakyat brokered by former Indonesian vice-president Jusuf Kalla, saying that he had to obtain the approval of other Umno leaders and that involved a long process.
In an interview with Indonesian weekly Tempo, he said despite not having inked the deal which, among other things, called for Pakatan and Barisan Nasional to accept the May 5 poll results and ensure a peaceful transition of power had the Opposition won, he was committed to it.
Najib said that reconciliation was still possible but only if Anwar accepted the poll results. News of this agreement became public knowledge after its contents were leaked to a regional newspaper in the days after the hotly-contested elections which saw Barisan retain power but with a smaller majority and without the popular vote.
Anwar and Pakatan came under some pressure following the disclosure of the deal to move on and accept the results of the elections.
But the opposition leadear maintained that the agreement was null and void because there was widespread fraud in the polls and that Najib was not a signatory to it.
Tempo said that the idea of the reconciliation agreement came up around the end of April, before Malaysia held its 13th general election. Anwar visited Kalla at his Jakarta residence and raised the possibility of a plan to end the post-election tension in Malaysia. Anwar asked Kalla to mediate with Najib. Tempo noted that Kalla and Najib are known to be close, due to their Bugis background.
At that time, Anwar was confident his opposition alliance of parties would win the elections. Tempo noted that the issue of reconciliation was in the air two weeks ago following separate meetings between Anwar and Najib with Kalla.
Below, are excerpts of Najib’s interview with the weekly while he was in Jakarta on a private visit.
Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/najib-confirms-pact-with-anwar-unsigned-but-committed-to-reconciliation/
