Pakatan to hold fresh elections after taking over

Pakatan Rakyat will hold a fresh snap general election once it has captured the federal government as planned during the coming parliamentary session, starting on Monday and ending on Dec 5.

PKR Penang chief Zahrain Mohd Hashim said it was vital for Pakatan to conduct an electoral process to secure the people's mandate to have the moral rights to govern even though technically the three-party coalition pact need not do so.

"In a democratic process, it was imperative for a ruling party to obtain a strong mandate from the masses after taking over through a parliamentary process," said Zahrain, who is also Bayan Baru MP.

"This is the consensual stand taken by Pakatan leaders that we should hold an election to obtain the people's mandate after taking over Putrajaya," he said.

He was speaking at a press conference during a function to receive
some 5,000 new PKR members, majority of whom former MIC members, at the party's Bayan Baru service centre in Penang today.

Earlier in his speech, Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim said that next
week's parliamentary session would be the last lap for Pakatan to
capture the federal government, helped by defection of more than 31 Barisan Nasional elected lawmakers.

"Monday will kick-start Pakatan's final onslaught to capture the
federal government."

"This will the last round," he told the new PKR members led by former
Bayan Baru MIC chief M Nganasegaran.

Final Push To Topple BN

Anwar, the Pakatan premier designate, however declined to deliberate on his modus operandi to topple the current government, opting to keep his cards close to his chest.

Out of the current 222 parliamentary seats, BN has 138 MPs, Pakatan 82. Three seats are held by independents - two belong to the Sabah Progressive Party while one is held by MP Ibrahim Ali.

Anwar said Pakatan had to go for a final push to topple the Barisan government, adding that he has been beseiged with questions from the public since Sept 16, the original date for his much-trumpeted takeover of the government.

"Everywhere I go people keep asking me when Pakatan is taking over. Some even accused me of lying," he said, brushing aside suggestions that the Pakatan takeover plan was doomed.

"It was not doomed, but has yet to happen," he assured. He has also set the new deadline for the toppling of the BN government by Hari Raya Haji on Dec 8 at the latest.

"We have built our base to go forward - if it does not happen this week or next week, it can possibly happen before the Aidil Adha festival," Anwar had told a crowd on Fridxay.

Zahrain said the opposition alliance had full confidence in Anwar's
promise to take over the federal government soon, confirming that the coming parliamentary session would answer voters' questions.

"I know Anwar for 30 years. He is a man of principle and will deliver
what he promised," Zahrain said.