Sunday August 3, 2008
Annuar defends boycott idea, says polls a trap
KOTA BARU: The Kelantan Umno liaison committee chairman has defended his proposal that the Barisan Nasional boycott the upcoming Permatang Pauh by-election.
Tan Sri Annuar Musa believes that the by-election is a trap laid by PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Although some see the boycott proposal as odd, Annuar is generally seen by Umno as a tactician. Emphasising that the proposal was his personal opinion, Annuar urged Umno and its Barisan partners to study it.
Annuar raised three points to support his proposal:
> THAT it was a waste of public funds since PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail had deliberately resigned from her post;
> THAT the timing of the by-election coincided with personal issues Anwar is facing; and
> THAT there should not be a by-election in the first place.
“Like it or not, Anwar is baiting Barisan. That is his strategy as he chose to contest when he is battling personal issues such as allegations of sexual misconduct. This makes the contest uncertain. If he is arrested prior to the run-up, his supporters would see him as a hero.
“If he loses, he would cite the allegations as an excuse and if he wins, he would signal the end of Barisan.
“There should not be a by-election in the first place as Dr Wan Azizah won with a thumping 13,000-plus majority. This shows the voters gave her a mandate, but instead she resigned,” he said.
“Having any by-election is not cheap. The money can be conserved and channelled to help the poor cope with rising living costs,” said Annuar.
Annuar said the entire by-election was a political gimmick dictated by Anwar.
Barisan accepted the people’s verdict made in the recent general election, he said, adding that it was now time to get on with serving them.
He accused Anwar of drawing up a risky plan that would subject the country to consecutive rounds of frenzied politicking.
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