Anwar wants debate

Source Straits Times

KUALA LUMPUR: A defiant Anwar Ibrahim yesterday raised the stakes in his battle for power, demanding that Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi convene an emergency parliamentary session to debate a no-confidence motion against the government.

Datuk Seri Abdullah dismissed it outright, telling reporters he had no intention of calling the session.

'I don't see any need for it because Parliament will resume sitting soon, after the Ramadan month. So use that time to do whatever,' he told a news conference after an Umno Supreme Council meeting.

The Dewan Rakyat is due to reconvene on Oct 13.

Datuk Seri Anwar had earlier told a news conference he wanted the special parliamentary session to convene no later than next Tuesday, the eve of his appearance again in court in connection with a sodomy charge.

He said the opposition Pakatan Rakyat coalition would consider the next course of action if Parliament did not reconvene.

'He refused our offer for a meeting. Now we are asking for a special session so we can show the numbers,' he said, insisting that the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition led by Mr Abdullah is now a 'minority government' because of defections to Pakatan.

Mr Anwar, during the press conference, refused to say what Pakatan would do if Mr Abdullah did not meet his demand but said he may seek an audience with the King, who has discretionary powers under the Constitution during a crisis in Parliament, including appointing a new premier.

'I am not discounting the possibility,' he said.

Earlier this week, Mr Anwar declared that more than 30 elected representatives from the BN coalition had defected to Pakatan and requested a meeting with the PM to discuss a peaceful handover of power.

But the Premier dismissed his claims, challenging him to disclose the identities of the alleged defectors.

'He doesn't believe me. Then go to Parliament,' Mr Anwar said yesterday, reiterating that he had to keep the identities of his backers secret to protect them from potential harassment.

The BN has 138 Members of Parliament and the opposition has 81, with three independents.

Politicians and analysts remain divided on whether Mr Anwar has enough votes to carry a no-confidence vote.

Close aides and supporters say he would not risk such a high-stakes gambit if he did not have the numbers. But his detractors say Mr Anwar is bluffing and is taking advantage of the crisis gripping the BN coalition and its main component, the United Malays National Organisation (Umno) led by Mr Abdullah.

A majority of Umno's rank-and-file blame Mr Abdullah's leadership for the party's poor performance in the early March general election, and calls for him to hand over power have grown louder in recent months ahead of key party polls in December.

Analysts say Mr Anwar is also hoping that his public declarations of control of the Lower House could prompt elected representatives among the ruling coalition's non-Malay partners and several Umno parliamentarians to defect.

Mr Abdullah on Wednesday labelled Mr Anwar as a threat to the economy and national security, raising the spectre that the opposition leader could be arrested in coming days under the Internal Security Act (ISA), as part of a wider swoop on government critics.

'There is no reason to arrest me under the ISA. We have a major political problem and the economy is in near crisis given the global economic situation and financial convulsions in the United States,' MrAnwar retorted yesterday. 'This is what the PM should focus on.'

Asked if more ISA arrests were imminent, Mr Abdullah said: 'I have no plans to use the ISA on anyone, I did not say anything to anyone; if there are people who feel that they will be arrested under the ISA, maybe it's because they feel guilty.'