Charge Saiful in Syariah court, says Anwar

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 8 — There's no need for Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan to be charged in court for consensual sodomy but he should be brought to the Syariah court, said Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

The Parti Keadilan Rakyat de facto leader, who was charged under Section 377B of the Penal Code at the Sessions Court here yesterday morning, said it was not necessary for his accuser to be dragged to the civil court because the alleged sodomy did not happen.

Section 377B refers to consensual sex against the order of nature including sodomy.

"It didn't happen, so I'm not interested. But charge him in the Syariah court. I have lodge a report for false accusation," he told hundreds of his supporters who attended a solat hajat (prayers of need) at his house in Segambut last night.

Anwar lodged a report with the Kuala Lumpur Islamic Religious Department (Jawi) on July 9 challenging the 23-year-old Saiful, his former aide, to produce four witnesses to the alleged sex attack under the provision of qazaf (false accusation), an offence which carries a three-year jail term or a RM5,000 fine or both.

After the prayers at his home, Anwar addressed thousands of his supporters at a ceramah in Taman Medan here late last night, telling them they should not worry about the sodomy trial, claiming it was all based on lies, and instead focus on the Permatang Pauh by-election.

"This will be the last case of such cruelty. After this, I will take action against anyone who tries such a thing," he said, referring to an imminent takeover plan of the federal government.

Anwar on stage speaking at the Taman Medan ceramah late last night. — Picture by Choo Choy May

He insisted that the timing of the charge was planned to distract from the issues of the by-election.

"But it's not up to Dollah Badawi to decide who can represent the people but the voters themselves," he said to back his claim that the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was behind the Sodomy II charge.

"One day he says it is rape, the next it's not. It changes according to his fancy, how shameful."

He revealed that the Pakatan Rakyat election agenda would focus on the economy.

"Investors are scared to invest in a country with a 'correct, correct, correct' judiciary," he said, referring to the Lingam video scandal, "and where ministers can't even debate properly," a reference to his opponent Information Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek who debated with him last month and "where there are reports of corruption against the prime minister and his deputy by their own party members," in reference to Umno veteran Datuk Mazlan Harun's recent report to the Anti-Corruption Agency.

He predicted that Barisan Nasional would harp on him being a "Chinese tool" but that he would reply that "Yes, I am a Chinese tool. I am an Indian tool, I am a Malay tool, I am a tool of all Malaysians."

To assist him in retaining the Permatang Pauh seat which was vacated by his wife Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Ismail for him to take over, Anwar planned to ask each voter in the constituency to donate RM1 to his campaign.

"Not only because I don't have the money to compete with BN but these donors will each become stakeholders in the campaign to take over Putrajaya," he said, adding that the Pakatan Rakyat's prime minister-in-waiting would not forget the contributions of the people.

He also announced that PKR vice-president Azmin Ali would be the by-election campaign manager.

Azmin told reporters after the ceramah that the Pakatan Rakyat would ignore the BN's propaganda on the sodomy charge and focus on the theme of taking over the government.

"This is not just about winning one seat. It is a symbol for change."

He added that about 10,000 new young voters had been identified in the electoral roll and the PKR Youth wing would be mobilised to establish relationships with them.

"We will also have a team that will be checking for phantom voters and also to ensure that voters make it to polling centres. We know of a stealth campaign by BN to tell voters not to turn up as the majority is already so great that it would not make a difference. This is a dangerous propaganda coupled with the decision to set the polling day for Tuesday, a working day."

The night's event also saw Gerakan Youth chief for Petaling Jaya Selatan, C.C. Lee, introduced as the latest grassroots leader to cross over to PKR.

-TMI