Anwar can live without becoming PM - Aussie report

PKR president Anwar Ibrahim said he is prepared to deal with the fact that he may never become prime minister, according to an interview with Australian-based publications The Age and Sydney Morning Herald.

"Asked about the extraordinary week in February that saw his hopes of being prime minister dashed once more, Anwar (above) insisted he could live with never being prime minister," said the report.

The "extraordinary week" refers to the "Sheraton Move" during which a series of political manoeuvring led to the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government.

"Certainly it would make a lot of sense to be in government, to be able to affect policy changes and real reform for the country, but it should not be at any price.

"We should do whatever is necessary, but not of course to sacrifice principles," Anwar was quoted as saying.

The Harapan government collapsed in late February after Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin took his party out of the coalition and joined forces with a group of PKR defectors led by former PKR deputy president Azmin Ali.

Together with Umno, PAS, GPS and other minor parties, they formed the new PN federal government.

However, Bersatu is split between Muhyiddin and party chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad who is against the move to quit Harapan.

In the interview, Anwar backed the new government's handling of the Covid-19 response but said scrutiny was needed on the RM250 billion stimulus package to cope with the economic downturn brought about by the pandemic.

He said at present, the stimulus package lacks transparency.

However, the Dewan Rakyat will only sit for one day on May 18.

"Because the government is fragile, the coalition, they lack legitimacy, they are of course very unsure and therefore they are unwilling to convene a proper session – and they are using Covid-19 as a pretext," he was quoted as saying.

Harapan has 92 MPs while Warisan and Upko can supply 10 MPs. Parti Sarawak Bersatu's (PSB), which has one MP, is also backing Harapan, bringing the total to 103 MPs.

Mahathir (above) has vowed to regain control of Bersatu, pull the party out of the PN government and bring it back to Harapan.

Bersatu has 36 MPs but the bulk of them are supporting Muhyiddin. Mahathir has at least five of the MPs, including himself, on his side.

This brings the total number of MPs on the Opposition bloc to 108, four seats shy of a majority.

It is still unclear if Mahathir will be able to muster more support to make up the numbers. - Mkini