GTA asks if absence of sparks between Anwar, Zahid hints at pact

Anwar Ibrahim has been targeting Dr Mahathir Mohamad more compared to Umno and its president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in the run-up to the general election, said Gerakatan Tanah Air (GTA) information chief Mahdzir Ibrahim.

He also noted how Zahid (above, right) remained silent when the PKR president announced he would be contesting in his home state of Perak, giving the impression that it was a welcomed move.

“Just like PKR, Umno is seen as attacking Perikatan Nasional (PN) and Mahathir more compared to Pakatan Harapan,” he added in a statement this afternoon.

Based on this stratagem, Mahdzir said if Umno succeeded in forming the government, Anwar (above, left) and PKR would not incur a massive loss.

“They would rather see BN win than have Mahathir return as prime minister.  The same with Zahid and Umno. They would rather see Anwar become prime minister compared to letting Mahathir win,” he added.

If this modus operandi is successful, Mahdzir claimed that Harapan and Umno could form a partnership to establish the next federal government.

“If Amanah refuses, it can be expelled from the coalition. The proof is how the Changkat Jong and Jerai seats were given to DAP.

“In this context, Amanah’s role is not as important as DAP’s because the latter can provide a sufficient number of non-Malay seats if Anwar and Zahid’s alliance is successful.

“The DAP leadership had given the impression from the initial stages that it is prepared to work with Umno to form the government if the need arises,” he added.

In this context, Mahdzir said that it is clear that Umno and Harapan, namely PKR, wish to avoid cooperating with Mahathir, GTA, and PN.

“The objective to fight the kleptocrats has vanished.

“Umno rejects Mahathir because he would not let the corrupt walk free, which would injure Umno. The same for PN. Working with Bersatu would be detrimental to Umno because numerous Umno lawmakers had joined Bersatu.

“Whereas PKR is worried that working with Mahathir would mean Anwar losing the chance to become prime minister.

“These clandestine schemes are ongoing. Who will be the victim, and who will reap the rewards?” he added.

In August, DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke did not rule out the possibility of Harapan working with Umno.

“I will not rule out anything because what is important is that we (all parties) must be agenda based.

“As far as DAP is concerned, we want to strengthen Harapan, we want to push for reforms. Good governance is our main agenda and we also want to see more integrity in our government as well as a fight against corruption,” he was quoted as saying.

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