If Dr M kept promises, Anwar would've had majority - Saifuddin

If Dr M kept promises, Anwar would've had majority - Saifuddin


PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the issue of party president Anwar Ibrahim not having the majority to become prime minister would not have arisen had Dr Mahathir Mohamad kept his promises.

He also denied Mahathir’s claim that the nonagenarian would still be prime minister if not for the ‘Anwar move’.

The move refers to the Pakatan Harapan leader being granted an audience with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to prove he had the numbers to form a new government.

“It was not a matter that Anwar had no support. The agreement before the 14th general election (GE14) was that Mahathir would be the seventh prime minister.

“Anwar, PKR, and Harapan kept their promises. Harapan won GE14 and Mahathir became the seventh prime minister.

“I myself who represented PKR alongside DAP and Amanah leaders involved know that Mahathir agreed to be the interim prime minister.

“He did not agree to set a date to resign but agreed to two years so as not to be seen as a ‘lame duck’. It’s apparent that Mahathir broke his promise,” Saifuddin (above) told Malaysiakini.

He was commenting on Mahathir’s interview with Utusan Malaysia which described Anwar as tidak lurus (not honest).

Prior to GE14, the Harapan leadership agreed to put Mahathir as their prime ministerial candidate, as Anwar was still serving his prison sentence at the time.

However, he resigned from his post in February 2020 after the Harapan-led government collapsed through the Sheraton Move political coup led by Muhyiddin Yassin and Azmin Ali.

Muhyiddin then went on to become the eighth prime minister after receiving support from BN, PAS, and GPS MPs.

Meanwhile, Anwar failed to get majority support from former Harapan-allied MPs.

Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Anwar Ibrahim


Speaking on the country’s political crisis in 2020, Saifuddin, who is also the Kulim-Bandar Baharu MP, alleged that Mahathir resigned as prime minister without first discussing with the Harapan leadership.

“He lost his position due to his own actions. If he admitted his mistakes, he would be more respected.

“PKR and Harapan’s promise to make Mahathir the seventh prime minister was fulfilled. Mahathir did not keep to his promises to relinquish the prime minister’s post to Anwar. PKR has never promised for Mahathir to be the eighth prime minister.

“If Mahathir fulfilled his promises, no doubt Anwar would have had enough majority,” he said.