Khairy & Shafie are scared Anwar will return - Zaid mocks PANICKY Umno leaders

KUALA LUMPUR - Former Umno leader Zaid Ibrahim told his former party mates to take it easy after they publicly shot down a proposal from Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim that Prime Minister Najib Razak holds a national dialogue with the Opposition to discuss critical issues now plaguing the nation including crime, corruption, racial polarization and religious intolerance.

"Khairy dan Shafie Apdal takut kalau Anwar masok balik. Mereka tak perlu takut. Anwar hanya menyahut seruan PM untok berdailog #fb," Zaid said on Twitter.

(Khairy and Shafie are afraid Anwar makes a comeback. They don't need to be afraid. Anwar just wants to have a dialogue with PM)

Anwar's offer has stirred up a storm in Umno, with ministers Nazri Aziz and Tengku Adnan, joining the fray.

Mukhriz Mahathir, the son of former premier Mahathir Mohamad, was the most vocal, virtually forbidding any interaction with Anwar while Khairy called Anwar's offer "an act of desperation".

"My view is that it is a waste of time to have any dialogue with Anwar," Rural Development minister Shafie Apdal told reporters on Monday.

"The election is over, we do not need to give him a platform. What is important now is for us to continue building the country, to unite the people."

Vested interests pile pressure on Najib

Yet, the speed with which the Umno supreme council had deliberated on the proposal, which was made on Friday morning, shows how anxiously the ruling party is viewing the current political stalemate in Malaysia.

While Umno-BN won 133 seats versus Pakatan's 89 in the 2013 election, Pakatan had won 51% of the total votes cast.

Najib's cousin, Hishammuddin Hussein, had told reporters that the supreme council had reached a "collective decision" on Friday evening, just hours after Anwar had made his offer, but it would be up to Najib to make the announcement.

"That is Umno speak for the supreme council deciding to allow Najib to make the final call. What the big shots are doing now is to show Najib their views on the matter. They want him to reject the offer," a political source told Malaysia Chronicle.

Don't be duped by the enemies: Statesman vs boors

Within the Pakatan Rakyat, PAS Youth has warned Anwar not to be duped by Umno leaders

"We are advising Anwar to be careful with any of the enemies' political games. Our concern is that he can get trapped...by individuals or groups with vested interests," said PAS Youth vice- chief Raja Ahmad Iskandar in a statement.

Shamsul Iskandar, the chief of the Youth wing at Anwar's PKR party, has responded with a reminder that Anwar was calling for unity talks related to policy issues and not proposing to form a unity government with BN.

"Saranan dialog PR & BN oleh YB DS @anwaribrahim ialah berkaitan isu2 rakyat. Bukannya "Unity Government"! Justeru tidak perlu khuatir. (The call for dialogue between Pakatan and BN by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is related to issues concerning the people. Not with unity government. So no need to worry)," PKR Youth Chief Shamsul Iskandar Akin said on Twitter.

Don't be discouraged if Umno rejects: We won't lose anything - DAP's Mohd Ariff

Meanwhile, DAP MP for Raub Mohd Ariff Sabri said Umno would be the biggest loser if it chose to ignore the call from Anwar and Pakatan to heed the wishes of the people.

"We won't lose of anything. If Anwar Ibrahim's bid for peace is not accepted, it does not matter. If Umno leaders refuse, do not be disheartened. Umno will be buried in the 14th general election. We will fight Umno until it loses," Mohd Ariff wrote in in a posting titled Dalam seminggu yang lalu (In the past week).

Malaysia Chronicle