Are you not ready to accept a woman leader, Anwar asks PAS
Anisah Shukry, The Malaysian Insider
Opposition leader Datuk Seri Dr Anwar Ibrahim today asked PAS whether it was defying Pakatan Rakyat’s decision to nominate his wife, Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, as the sole Selangor menteri besar, simply because she was a woman.
“Because this involves a woman’s position, does this mean they are not ready to accept a woman as a leader? They must consider this,” he said after he withdrew a defamation suit against former home minister Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar.
The PKR de facto leader was commenting on PAS’s decision yesterday to submit more than one name as Selangor menteri besar candidate to the palace.
PAS’s move goes against the PR presidential council’s decision on August 17 to nominate only Dr Wan Azizah for the post.
On Tuesday, PKR and DAP said they were standing by their decision to nominate only Dr Wan Azizah, despite the Selangor sultan’s decree that each party in PR submit at least three names to him.
But PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang told his central committee members on August 25 that he could not accept Dr Wan Azizah on the grounds of religion and qualification, a source said, referring to the previous argument that being a woman, she would not be able to lead.
”The fallout from all of this, as I told PAS, is how can we ensure PR stays strong? If this happens, this will be the first time in PR’s history there is no consensus in proposing only one name,” said Anwar today.
He reminded the Islamist party that the final decision had been reached during the August 17 meeting, and that the pact was bound to it.
”Of course, we have to respect all the decisions in the parties, but we have to appeal to them to accept the spirit of the coalition.
“This will be the beginning or perceived to be (the beginning of) major differences, lack of consensus or inability to reach consensus and breach of that understanding that we achieved so far.”
But Anwar denied that PAS’s decision yesterday to submit more than one name to the sultan marked the end of the PR government in Selangor.
“It’s a bit premature to say that (it is the end) because the general consensus and feeling of supporters of PAS, PKR and DAP is to make sure PR continues to be formidable.”
