Anwar responds to open letter

IN a response to “An open letter to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim,” Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said his joint statement with Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad did not mean that he was joining forces with the two-time premier again, but rather he was making a statement as a leader of the opposition.

He noted that the joint statement made was not a sign of a return to an old alliance, as “we have left that, as did Bersatu, and we have learned from previous experiences.”

“I have been asked, why have I not learned from previous experiences, and why am I discarding my principles and idealism? I accept the criticism, but wish to say that, as the chairman of Pakatan Harapan (PH), and an opposition leader, the consensus in PH is that the spirit of the manifesto and the spirit of that idealism has not faded,” said Anwar.

He shared that part of the reason he had accepted Mahathir’s leadership in 2018 was that his hands were still tied, considering his stay in prison. He also shared that he wanted a strong and rooted opposition front.

“In 2013, our popular vote was 52%. This showed that we had that core strength, but we were grateful for the additional support, and formed PH. Many changes were made, but there were definitely weaknesses voiced that we now had to reiterate the principles of PH, that we want to form a more transparent and caring administration,” he added. – May 14, 2020

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