Khairy unsurprised by ‘Anwar backpedal’

Commenting on the Bank Negara revelations, the Umno Youth chief says the DAP stalwart is forced to swallow his past criticisms against Anwar Ibrahim.

PETALING JAYA: Prior to being sacked as deputy prime minister and booted out of Umno, Lim Kit Siang had been a staunch critic of Anwar Ibrahim.

But after the latter’s unceremonious exit from power in 1998, the pair formed an alliance to vanquish a common foe then, former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad, and later on his successors.

Lim’s change of stance with regard to Anwar had failed to surprise Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin.

According to the Rembau MP, it was a matter of political survival for both Lim’s DAP and the opposition bloc Pakatan Rakyat.

“Pakatan only has Anwar as a uniting factor. Without Anwar, Pakatan is finished,” he told FMT.

The Rembau MP was commenting on blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin’s latest posting that Anwar was responsible for covering-up Bank Negara’s colossal losses some two decades ago.

The blogger also revealed how in 1994, Lim had called Anwar a liar in Parliament when the latter denied any involvement in the matter.

Khairy said that Lim was now forced to backpedal because there was no succession plan or alternative which the Pakatan parties could agree to.

“Tell me whom? [PKR deputy president] Azmin [Ali], [PAS president] Abdul Hadi [Awang], Kit Siang [who could succeed Anwar as the Pakatan supremo]?

“Because there is no one else, Lim must swallow whatever criticisms he made about Anwar in the past including the latter’s role in the Bank Negara forex losses because Anwar’s survival as the glue that holds Pakatan together is more important than anything else,” he added.

Thorough probe needed

Meanwhile, Khairy also called for a thorough investigation into Anwar’s role pertaining to the Bank Negara losses.

He said the opposition leader could not sidestep the issue as he was the finance minister then.

“The governor of Bank Negara reports to the minister of finance. If Anwar says he was not responsible, then there was clear dereliction of duties [on his part] as minister of finance.

“How can he now turn around and blame others? As the minister that Bank Negara reports to, the buck stops with him,” he added.

Raja Petra’s posting was in reaction to former Bank Negara deputy governor Rosli Yaakop’s allegation that four people were involved in the losses amounting to RM30 billion.

Rosli named former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad, former finance minister Daim Zainuddin, former Bank Negara governor, the late Jaafar Hussein, and minister in the prime minister’s Department Nor Mohamed Yakcop of being involved in the scandal.