Saifuddin: Anwar not Pakatan’s PM candidate for now but that could change

(MMO) – Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s decision to withdraw as Pakatan Harapan’s prime minister-designate is not a decision set in stone, the pact’s chief secretary said.

Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah said that Anwar’s decision was one of a statesman, not a politician, and was testimony to his “love for the people.”

“It shows that he loves the people beyond anything else… But he remains the number one PM candidate.

“Maybe not for GE14, but in politics nothing is certain,” Saifuddin told Malay Mail Online, alluding that the pact still wants him to become PM at some point.

But Saifuddin did not elaborate on how Pakatan Harapan would go about achieving this.

He claimed that Anwar has cemented his legacy as Malaysia’s “Bapa Reformasi” as the PKR de facto leader started the move to champion issues of reform and good governance.

Last Saturday, Anwar, who will be 70 on August 10, said he will not offer himself as Pakatan Harapan’s candidate for prime minister, describing debates around the issue as “tiring” as such a decision should be in the hands of voters.

The jailed Opposition leader also rejected Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia’s (PPBM) proposal for Pakatan Harapan’s presidential council line-up, saying that it mirrored the ruling Barisan Nasional’s structure.

PPBM recently proposed that its leaders Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin be appointed Pakatan Harapan’s chairman and president, with Anwar as adviser.