Accept it, this is a Dr M-Anwar government, says DAP man

Johor DAP chairman Liew Chin Tong says Pakatan Harapan came to power due to the reconciliation between Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Anwar Ibrahim.

PETALING JAYA: A DAP leader today stressed that Pakatan Harapan came to power due to the reconciliation between Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Anwar Ibrahim.

“We might as well accept the fact that this is a Mahathir-Anwar government, as much as it is an Anwar-Mahathir government,” Johor DAP chairman Liew Chin Tong said in a Facebook post, reflecting on the ruling coalition’s recent loss in Tanjung Piai.

Ties between Mahathir and the PKR president soured following the dramatic sacking of Anwar — once tipped to succeed Mahathir as prime minister — in 1998.

Mahathir, however, made peace with his former deputy and protege in 2016, and both men created the coalition that brought down Barisan Nasional in the May 9 polls last year.

Under a deal struck by the PH leadership, Mahathir is to hand over the reins to Anwar at an unspecified date.

Both men, Liew said, have promised to see through the transition.

The deputy defence minister also said many non-Malays were blaming Mahathir for PH’s devastating loss in the Tanjung Piai by-election last Saturday by a 15,000-vote majority.

This led to some calling for him to step down as prime minister.

Liew said while he understood their feelings, the reality was that DAP had to work in a coalition.

“We need both Dr Mahathir and Anwar to consolidate our nascent democracy,” he 

He said PH has to do its best to keep the entire coalition in the middle, citing the nation’s multi-ethnic, multi-religious, and multi-cultural society.

“There is still time for this government to reform,” he said. - FMT