It was Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) adviser Anwar Ibrahim who pursued the deal to ensure that Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak ceded power if Pakatan Rakyat won in the recent general election, according to a witness at meetings an Indonesian go-between had with the two leaders.    

Witness Hamid Awaludin, the former Indonesian minister of law and human rights, said “nothing jeopardised the agreement in the run-up to the election or on election day. The agreement still stood”.   

However, “things changed after Najib was declared the winner”, Hamid said, adding that Anwar had sought the agreement for acceptance of the 13th general election result because Anwar had “convinced himself that he would win the election” in light of the opinion polls that were often in his favour, and the crowd turnout at the Pakatan rallies.   

Hamid, who was also Indonesia’s ambassador to Russia and Belarus from 2008 to 2011, told Bernama he was present during the discussions that former Indonesian vice-president Jusuf Kalla had with Anwar and Najib.     

“It was Jusuf Kalla who accepted Anwar’s request to mediate. He (Jusuf) did not take the initiative and approach Anwar,” he said.

Anwar, in media reports recently, denied that he reneged on a peace pact brokered by Jusuf and claimed that the former Indonesian vice-president was the one who reached out to him to offer his assistance in ensuring an orderly outcome of the general election.   

However, it was reported that Anwar acknowledged that he had made the agreement with Najib, with Jusuf as mediator, but claimed that the Barisan Nasional (BN) had revoked it by the way it ran its campaign.

The general election saw the Najib-led BN return to power by winning 133 of the 222 parliamentary seats, resulting in Anwar and Pakatan Rakyat staging rallies across the country since May 8 claiming election fraud.  

‘Najib gave his word’

Hamid also pointed out that Anwar knew that Najib did not sign the agreement, “but Najib gave his word that he would honour the agreement”.

“He consented to the agreement,” he said and added that Najib delivered on his promise and called for national reconciliation during his election result acceptance speech.

“Najib’s deeds matched his word,” stressed Hamid.

Q. Anwar claims there were several “preconditions” in the agreement e.g. free elections, fair media, etc. Can you outline any preconditions?

A. I am very sure that there were no preconditions discussed between Jusuf Kalla and Anwar. For me, a deal is a deal. And there was a deal that both parties - Anwar and Najib - agreed to. Some people always try and find a loophole after the event, or an excuse not to deliver on their promise. Some people are different in character to others.

    

Q. Anwar now claims PM Najib didn’t sign the agreement and it was therefore not valid. Jusuf Kalla says the PM did give his verbal agreement and therefore the deal was agreed by both parties, and was valid. Is Anwar correct or is Jusuf Kalla?

A. Anwar knew that Najib did not sign the agreement. Najib had very reasonable political reasons for not signing the agreement and Anwar understood and accepted it.  

But Najib gave his word that he would honour the agreement. He consented to the agreement. Basic morality teaches us that a man’s word is more important than his signature. And deeds are more important than any declaration. Najib delivered on his promise. He called for national reconciliation during his election result acceptance speech. Najib’s deeds matched his word.  

Q. On election day, did you feel that the agreement was still in place? Had anything happened before election day to invalidate the agreement?   

A. I am very sure that nothing jeopardised the agreement in the run-up to the election or on election day. The agreement still stood.

Things changed after Najib was declared the winner. Even the day after Najib’s victory, I was personally optimistic that a deal is a deal, and both sides would abide by the deal.

But Anwar broke the deal. Perhaps he was unable to manage his followers, especially because the DAP had won more seats than Anwar’s own party.

Anwar found himself in a difficult position. But a leader must lead, not be led.   

Q. Do you and Jusuf Kalla feel Anwar broke the deal? If so, how?

A. I feel that Anwar still does not accept political reality. Perhaps he has things he will not say because he doesn’t want to hurt people. I don’t know.

    

Q. Do you feel Anwar was/is sincere in wanting national reconciliation in Malaysia?

A. I believed that Anwar had sincerity and I still hope he has.

    

Q. Why do you think Anwar is behaving in the manner in which he is - denying the agreement, refusing to cede defeat and organising protests across Malaysia?

 

A. From the beginning, Anwar convinced himself that he would win the election. He had struggled for so long and he thought that this was the end of the struggle. He thought he would win the battle and defeat Barisan Nasional.   

His belief was strengthened by opinion polls that were often in his favour. And each rally Anwar held during the campaign attracted massive crowds.

But in the end, the people’s choice is the ultimate factor in a democracy.

Anwar believed he would win the election but he was afraid Najib would resist and not hand over power. So Anwar wanted insurance against this scenario. That is why he came up with the idea of the deal.

- Bernama