Pro-Anwar NGOs want Dr Mahathir to confirm precise date he is handing over to Anwar


(The Star) – A group of NGOs, including Bersih 2.0 and the Muslim Youth Movement of Malaysia (Abim), want the Prime Minister to set a clear transition plan for Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to take over by 2021 and make him the deputy prime minister six months before that date for the sake of political stability.

“The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih 2.0), together with Abim and Gabungan Bertindak Malaysia (GBM), hereby calls on Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and the leadership of Pakatan Harapan to take clear and decisive steps to bring about political stability in the country by putting in place a clear transition plan based on their pre-GE14 agreement.

“The current feud in PKR, a major component party of the Pakatan coalition, is causing much concern among both our citizens and the international community as it has the potential to break up the coalition and cast our nation into political disarray, ” the group said in an open letter issued at a press conference on Wednesday (Aug 7).

The group said that it calls on Dr Mahathir to set a date, somewhere between a year from now to latest May 9, 2021, to hand over power to PKR president Anwar, in accordance with the pre-GE14 agreement among the Pakatan component parties.

“Though it was said that no time frame was stated in the agreement, Dr Mahathir himself has said on numerous occasions that it would be between two to three years from Pakatan forming the government. To ensure a smooth transition, Anwar should be appointed Deputy PM six months before the set date.

“With a clear and publicly known transition plan, it would quash rumours and conspiracy theories perpetrated by those who seek to gain from the instability and see the break-up of the coalition, ” said the group.

The statement further said that to avoid a repeat of the situation now, the Pakatan Presidential Council should also limit the premiership to a tenure of two terms and de-concentrate the power of the Prime Minister.

The NGO leaders, however, insisted at the press conference that they were non-partisan as to who becomes the next Prime Minister, but said they were naming Anwar, as it was the Pakatan agreement promised to the people in the last general election.



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