Anwar wanted to take over Putrajaya ‘at all costs’, says ex-PKR MP

Datuk Seri Zahrain Mohamed Hisham was appointed Malaysia's envoy to Indonesia last year. He quit PKR in 2009 and became an independent MP. – The Malaysian Insider pic, December 15, 2014.Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim intended to take over Putrajaya "at all costs" through his September 16, 2008 plan and had made monetary promises to some Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs as an inducement to cross over, the Kuala Lumpur High Court heard today.

Former PKR Bayan Baru MP Datuk Seri Zahrain Mohamed Hisham told the court he had personally met with several BN MPs in 2008 to persuade them to join Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and form a new Federal government, but added that he himself had not offered them any money.

Zahrain, who is the defence witness in Anwar's defamation suit against Datuk Seri Anifah Aman, said that after approaching the BN MPs, he would refer those who were interested to Anwar.

"I know that the plaintiff (Anwar) had made monetary promises to some of the BN members of parliament to 'party-hop' and for the others, there were promises of particular positions that they would hold if the plaintiff's party formed the new Federal government," said Zahrain in his witness statement.

Zahrain said that Anwar had used the words "at all costs" and this meant that he would utilise whatever means at his disposal to ensure that PR would form the new government by enticing BN MPs to cross over.

"This includes, and was not limited to, monetary gains to get the Barisan Nasional MPs to do so," he said in the statement.

He described Anwar as a "megalomaniac" who could not accept that his party was defeated in the 2008 general election.

However, when questioned by Anwar's lawyer in court, Ranjit Singh, Zahrain admitted that he did not know about the monetary promises for a fact, as he had only learned of it from others.

Zahrain, who quit PKR in 2010 and was appointed as the Malaysian ambassador to Indonesia last year, also denied such offers were corruption, and instead called it "inducement".

Anwar had initiated the suit against Anifah in May 2009, who was alleged to have uttered defamatory words about Anwar during a news conference in Washington with former United States secretary of state Hillary Clinton.

Anifah, who was appointed Foreign Minister in 2009, had told reporters that Anwar had offered him the post of deputy prime minister if he brought MPs from his home state of Sabah to topple the BN government which had won 140 seats in the 2008 general election.

In his statement of claim, Anwar alleged that Anifah's claims were baseless, unfounded and grossly negligent and had been widely reported in the local and foreign media.

The hearing before judicial commissioner Siti Khadijah S.Hassan continues.

- TMI