In recent weeks, Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim has been touring the national ceramah circuit to charm his legion of followers, building support ahead of his second sodomy trial.

But last night, Anwar replaced his usual charm offensive by beating war drums before declaring all-out war against rival Umno and its leader Najib Abdul Razak.

anwar ceramah at party hq 070210 04 "This is the final battle... This is the last test for Pakatan Rakyat," thundered Anwar, as he rallied his 300 supporters gathered in a cramped shop-lot near the PKR headquarters in Petaling Jaya.

Anwar's image is taking a severe beating from the wall-to-wall coverage of the sodomy trial , which is currently centred on complainant Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan's testimony of the alleged crime.

Among others, Saiful told the Kuala Lumpur High Court Anwar had come on to him before embracing the complainant while they were both clad only in towels.

‘Counter-attack'

For Anwar, Saiful's damaging testimony is a desperate attempt by Umno to break up the fledgling Pakatan Rakyat coalition and its supporters cannot stand idle.

"They are attacking Perak, Kelantan, Selangor and Kedah. Anwar, Nik Aziz, Kit Siang, Khalid Ibrahim and Guan Eng are all under fire. Umno is down to their last bullet," he said.

Anwar urged his supporters to launch a "counter-attack" and engage members of the public regarding the sodomy charges, which he maintains is trumped up, and other current affairs matters.

Later, Anwar addressed attacks on his credentials as a Malay champion and challenged Najib to a televised debate over who were the ‘real traitors' of the Malays race.

"Does Najib dare to accept my challenge? Why not he and (his deputy) Muhyiddin (Yassin) take me on? I will face them alone!" boasted Anwar, to hoots of approval from those present.

Anwar has repeatedly been called a Malay traitor for calling for the dismantling of the New Economic Policy, which he argued is being abused by Umno for the benefit of a select few.

Hand kissers and deserters

After his usual round of Umno-bashing, Anwar trained his sights on the enemies within, who have in recent weeks caused havoc for PKR and conflict between Pakatan allies.

Without naming anyone, Anwar likened the intra-party feuds to how he was deserted by his closest allies back in 1998, when he faced his first sodomy trial.

"There were people who once kissed my hand, but when I was sacked (as deputy premier), they ran away . Now, there are also people like them. If they want to run, so be it!" said Anwar.

This is believed to be Anwar's first major rebuke of PKR ‘trouble-makers' and it won rousing applause from the crowd.

Anwar is believed to be referring to four PKR MPs who have been heavily criticising the PKR leadership and attacking leaders of Pakatan allies.

The four are Zahrain Mohamed Hashim (Bayan Baru), Tan Tee Beng (Nibong Tebal), Zulkifli Nordin (Bandar Bahru Kulim) and Wee Choo Keong (Wangsa Maju).

Second tier ready

Meanwhile, PKR Youth chief Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin announced that the movement would launch a campaign, dubbed the "Orange Wave", to counter the media onslaught over the sodomy trial.

He urged the public to don orange as a sign of support for Anwar, who himself got the ball rolling by putting on the movement's new t-shirt for his speech.

A anwar ceramah at party hq 070210 03 nwar's daughter and Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah hailed the ceramah last night as a success due to the good attendance set by the party's elected representatives.

"This proves that we have a second tier of leaders. We have soldiers who can step up whenever needed," she told reporters at the Kuala Lumpur court complex after the adjournment of the sodomy trial today.

She stressed that this was important because the party struggle is not based on just one personality, although the priority now was to keep Anwar out of prison. 

[WATCH VIDEO]