Anwar mulls options as BN MPs go on junket

Anwar speaking to reporters in Jakarta today after attending the regional enterpreneurs conference.

JAKARTA, Sept 6 — Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will mull his options to take power by Sept 16 in the face of a Barisan Nasional plan to take its lawmakers abroad to avert defection.

But Anwar remained confident of toppling the BN by Malaysia Day, saying today he has enough BN MPs to form a government.

"So now maybe it will be the 17th when they return," Anwar told reporters in Jakarta where he attended a regional enterpreneurs conference.

He added he will return to Kuala Lumpur today to discuss the issue with colleagues in his Parti Keadilan Rakyat.

Anwar became parliamentary opposition leader when he won the Permatang Pauh by-election on Aug 26. His coalition has 82 lawmakers, including an independent, to THE BN's 140 in the 222-seat Parliament, which is in recess until Oct 13.

The Malaysian Insider reported yesterday that the BN Backbenchers Club has planned a trip for BN lawmakers to either Australia or other destinations from Sept 7 to 19, ostensibly to study agriculture and other matters ahead of the next Parliament session.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak has confirmed he approved of the trip but cynics and opposition lawmakers said it is a junket to sequester the MPs ahead of Anwar's Sept 16 deadline to topple the BN. The trip itself has seen lukewarm response from BN lawmakers who insist they will not cross over to Pakatan Rakyat.

“It is not true that they say there is no exodus of MPs," Anwar said, adding "I will only announce the names when the time is right. That is my agreement with them."

But he said the proposed BN trip added another dimension to what he called fresh pressures and threats from Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's recent statements to prevent the collapse of his government.

"Ours is an agenda of reform. We want political stability and will ensure that happens," the 61-year-old former deputy prime minister said, warning the government from implementing measures including "the Mugabe method" in referring to Zimbabwe's crackdown on opposition politicians recently.

Despite the trip, Anwar claimed that more BN MPs have expressed a desire to join his party. "I received a call this morning from one of them saying 'Pak Anwar, count me in!'," he said, beaming a confident smile.

He also told Indonesian reporters that he was committed to a foreign relations policy that counted the United States as a friend in both political and economic spheres of relations. But he said he opposed the Iraqi invasion and the war on terror, adding friends can differ on occasions.

-TMI