Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Anwar: 20% royalties for Sabah if Pakatan forms govt

Tuesday April 15, 2008

KUALA LUMPUR: If Pakatan Rakyat forms the Federal Government, Sabah will get up to 20% of royalties from oil and gas and timber, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said. More schools would be built and help would be given to the poor there, he told reporters after a rally to celebrate the end of his exile from active politics at the Sultan Sulaiman Club field here last night.

Asked if he would run for Parliament, he said it was too premature to talk about it because the MPs had not been sworn in yet. He said he needed about a couple of weeks as defections could only take place after the swearing-in.

He reiterated that the Pakatan Rakyat government is ready to form the Federal Government and was now waiting for the right time and the right numbers. He said they had already secured the number of MPs but Pakatan Rakyat wanted to form the Federal Government with a strong majority and that none of the MPs had been bought over.

As to who from Pakatan Rakyat should be the Prime Minister, he said he did not see why PKR president Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail could not be the first Malaysian woman Prime Minister. However, he cautioned that any decision made by Pakatan Rakyat would be done through consensus. He added that it was not a priority for him to enter Parliament but to ensure that all the states under the Pakatan Rakyat government were administered well and to continue negotiations with those who believe in their agenda.

At about 10.30pm, the police interrupted Anwar's speech to tell him that it was time to wind up. Earlier, Anwar, who arrived at 9pm, was greeted with cheers and chants of reformasi.

Thousands of supporters turned up at the celebration with heavy presence of Federal Reserve Unit personnel and water cannon trucks but there was no untoward incident. The crowd dispersed around 11.30pm. City CPO Muhammad Sabtu Osman told reporters at the police contingent headquarters here later that no arrest had been made.

“However, we will review whether we could arrest anyone for attending the rally which was held without a permit,'' he said. - The Star : Tuesday April 15, 2008

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