Former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim today claimed the Lingam tape inquiry&rsquo;s decision not to include him as a witness was the manipulation of an &ldquo;unseen hand&rdquo;.


 <img align="right" alt="anwar ibrahim vk lingam hearing pc 290108 talking" height="246" src="http://mk-cdn.mkini.net/109/71f7878431ef5af04c87b82fcf86db09.jpg" title="anwar ibrahim vk lingam hearing pc 290108 talking" width="160"/>
 &ldquo;This hand is so powerful that the (Royal) Commission will stop at nothing to prevent me from giving evidence, even though the evidence concerned will definitely shed light on the testimony given so far,&rdquo; said Anwar.


 Reading from a prepared statement during a press conference at his Petaling Jaya office, Anwar did not provide any indications as to identity of the &ldquo;unseen hand&rdquo; he was referring to.


 He was reacting to commission chairperson Haidar Mohd Noor
 <a href="http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/77497" target="_blank">
 
 announcement yesterday
 
 </a>
 that Anwar would not be called because the evidence which the latter wishes to produce were not directly linked to the inquiry.


 Anwar said that he had previously informed the commission that he can provide evidence of judicial corruption if called as a witness.


 &ldquo;I am certain that the evidence that I can give will be a significant assistance to the Haidar Commission to get the truth behind this dark patch in Malaysian judicial history,&rdquo; he said.


 &ldquo;Instead... the commissioners (in particular Haidar) have chosen to fetter themselves with procedural legalities and restrictive interpretations as to what they can do and what they cannot do,&rdquo; he added.


 
 
 Restrictiveness
 
 


 Elaborating, Anwar said that the royal commission had adopted a restrictive interpretation of its terms of reference and excluded &ldquo;case fixing&rdquo; from its scope.


 Anwar said that this was a integral part of the video as several prominent court cases, including his own, was mentioned by Lingam.


 He later expressed hope that the commission would eventually allow him to appear before the commission in order to furnish evidence.


 &ldquo;(Furthermore,) in their testimonies, Mahathir (Mohamad) and (Mohd) Eusoff Chin claimed that a lot of things have been
 <a href="http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/77530" target="_blank">
 
 forgotten
 
 </a>
 . My memory is still quite good.


 &ldquo;They claim they are old, tired and not too well. I&rsquo;ve told the commission that (the relevant matters) are still fresh in my mind. Don&rsquo;t wait too long, in the next few years I might also tend to forget,&rdquo; he said.


 Anwar also reminded the commission that he was a cabinet minister at the material and capable of filling the holes left by Mahathir and Eusoff.


 &ldquo;They can choose to accept or reject my evidence, but at least listen (to what I have to say),&rdquo; he added.


 
 
 Third-part
 
 


 On Haidar&rsquo;s claim that he was releasing the Lingam tape clip on an &lsquo;installment basis&rsquo;, Anwar said the comment was unfounded.


 &ldquo;I have received the video only on Friday (Jan 25) after I came back from Hong Kong,&rdquo; he said.


 Anwar had released a &lsquo;
 <a href="http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/77505" target="_blank">
 
 third-segment
 
 </a>
 &rsquo; controversial Lingam tape clip yesterday which purportedly implicates former Chief Justice Mohamed Dzaiddin Abdullah of receiving bribes from a senior lawyer and a tycoon.


 
 
 <a href="http://www.malaysiakini.tv/video/15424.html" target="_blank">
 Watch the 13-minute video here.
 </a>

PKR&rsquo;s

 de facto

leader Anwar Ibrahim believes that a powerful &lsquo;unseen hand&rsquo; is manipulating the progress of the ongoing inquiry.

 
 [VIDEO INSIDE]

'Unseen hand' manipulating inquiry

~RM12

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