Pakatan Harapan de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim has reiterated that his relationship with Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad "is good".
Anwar, who was endorsed by the ruling coalition as the eighth prime minister to succeed Mahathir, said he would not "disrupt" the current administration.
This came following his recent visits to several rulers of the state, which sparked speculation that he was interfering in the administration in light of PKR having won the largest number of parliamentary seats in the May 9 general election.
PKR has 49 MPs, followed by DAP (42) , Bersatu (13) and Amanah (11).
Speculation also has been rife that Anwar was against appointing senior lawyer Tommy Thomas as the new attorney-general to replace Apandi Ali.
“So far, there has been very good communication… I will speak with him again. Last night, I spoke with him over the phone. He has given good access to me," said Anwar.
“When I telephone, within minutes, I get connected. And this is a prime minister who is busy. Mahathir also knows where I go. Whether I seek an audience with the King or meet the people, I inform Mahathir beforehand.
“I give way to him to administrate without any disturbance and I let him be comfortable to carry out his job," he was quoted as saying by The Malaysian Insight (TMI).
There were allegations that he was meeting with the rulers to "plan something", Anwar said.
His meetings with the rulers, he explained, was to assure them that despite the change of government, the constitution had not changed - nor had the status of the Malay rulers.
"If I were planning something, I would work with the MPs in PKR. It doesn't need to involve the rulers," the PKR de facto leader added.
"I strongly reject (the allegations) and I would like to remind the people that we will go head-to-head against them because they have always sought the ruin of Harapan.
"The spirit and principles of Harapan have held steady since 2008. Now I support this new government. All of this relies on building trust and confidence among the leadership," Anwar said, adding that any internal conspiratorial elements must be exposed.
He also brushed off critics who opposed to having him in the present administration.
“You know why I say I’m not too worried? It’s because as long as my rapport with Mahathir is excellent, they can’t break that.
“Well, they said in 1998 that happened, although my rapport (with Mahathir) then was great, it could still break. But we have learned. Mahathir learned that lesson. I, too, learned that lesson," Anwar added.
Anwar was sacked as deputy prime minister and finance minister in 1998 and sent to jail for sodomy and corruption the following year.
It took Anwar's family almost 20 years to forgive Mahathir for sacking Anwar. -Mkini
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