Communications and Multimedia Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek today turned down requests from two opposition MPs to debate Umno-linked lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah live on television.

During his speech in the Dewan Rakyat today, Shabery said that the duo - Rafizi Ramli (PKR-Pandan) and Hanipa Maidin (PAS-Sepang) - were "not on the same level" as Shafee.

He said this after being asked by the duo if his ministry would facilitate the debate on opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim's sodomy conviction.

"If you want to debate, both must be from the same level. This is tak sepadan (not from the same level) to debate someone like Shafee.

"That is why I offered to space to the Bar Council president but he was afraid. The Bar Council president threw a stone and then hid his hand," Shabery said, referring to the Bar Council's criticism of Anwar's conviction.

Previously, Shabery said he would provide a platform for an open debate on the topic to critics who wanted to debate Shafee on whether Anwar was the victim of a political conspiracy.

Eventually, Shabery said that his invitation was limited only to then-Bar Council president Christopher Leong.

Is Shabery qualified to debate Anwar?

Leong had issued a stinging statement, suggesting that Anwar was a victim of persecution and that there were " glaring anomalies " during the trial.

However, Hanipa and Rafizi are both hounding Shabery for a chance to debate Shafee on television over the latter's roadshow where personal attacks against Anwar were made.

"If (Shafee) is afraid to debate someone like me, how will he debate the Bar Council president?" Hanipa asked.

Rafizi also accussed the minister of retracting his open offer of debate after realising the "public anger" over Shafee's roadshow.

Following this, Shabery began hurling personal attacks at Rafizi and Hanipa.

"You hail from Kemaman, but you went and contest in Pandan. If one wants to prove he is a anak jantan (real man), then he must stay in Kemaman and fight," said Shabery, who is the Kemaman MP.

Rafizi's retort was the Shabery was not qualified to go toe-to-toe with Anwar during a televised debate in 2008.