Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin’s participation in roadshow to explain the conviction of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has been criticised by party colleague Syed Rosli Syed Harman Jamalullail. ‘Khairy as the Umno Youth chief and youth and sports minister should be more focused on the problems facing the youth,’ he said. – The Malaysian Insider pic, February 20, 2015.
Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin should focus on problems affecting the youth rather than going on a nationwide road show to explain Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's sodomy conviction, an Umno man said today.
Pusat Bandar Taman Chempaka branch information chief Syed Rosli Syed Harman Jamalullail said the road show would only backfire on Umno as the majority of the public sympathised with Anwar's family.
He added that the road show was also disrespectful and humiliating to Anwar and his family, who were fellow Muslims.
"The road show will backfire on Umno because many feel sympathy towards Anwar Ibrahim and the best route Umno should take through Umno Youth is to calm the situation down, not by organising a public road show.
"Khairy, as the Umno Youth chief and youth and sports minister, should be more focused on problems facing the youth, such as affordable housing, cost of living, cheap education, mat rempit, social problems, and more," Syed Rosli said in a statement.
He added that the country's performance in sports deteriorated since Khairy became minister, with Malaysia failing to obtain a gold medal in both the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games.
Khairy said Barisan Nasional (BN) will go on a nationwide road show featuring Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah to explain the Federal Court judgment on Anwar's sodomy case.
He said the party had been accused of criticising a political conspiracy against Anwar since he was first charged in 2008, but it had kept silent all these years for fear of being in contempt of the courts.
"Now that the case is over, do you expect us, as a political party, to keep quiet?" Khairy told some 300 people at a dialogue in Petaling Jaya.
Syed Rosli (pic, left) said today that many condemned Khairy's roadshow because they felt Anwar should be left alone to carry out his five-year prison term, without heaping further humiliation on his family.
He added that he was personally suspicious of Khairy's true intentions, saying that there were rumours Khairy once considered Anwar an idol during the Reformasi era of 1998, when he was studying in England.
"I am not confirming the rumours, but if Khairy is willing to make a statement and swear to it to clear his name of such accusations, I am sure more will respect him because many believe all of this is just a show to prove Khairy has never supported Anwar Ibrahim," he added.
Syed Rosli is not the first BN leader to criticise the Umno Youth-organised roadshow.
De facto law minister Nancy Shukri (pic, right) yesterday said she was against it as well, and suggested that Shafee have a public debate with the Bar Council to end the issue.
On February 10, the Federal Court bench led by Chief Justice Tun Arifin Zakaria dismissed Anwar’s final appeal against his conviction for sodomising his former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan.
Shafee was appointed by Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail in July 2013 to conduct the prosecution's appeal after the High Court acquitted Anwar.
Former Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan said it was unprecedented for Shafee to attack an accused person after a court has delivered its verdict.
She said it was not done in good faith and it was improper because Anwar could not defend himself.
Lawyers for Liberty executive director Eric Paulsen said Shafee’s ongoing tirade against Anwar only showed he is now Umno's hatchet man with a vendetta.
The Malaysian Muslim Youth Movement said Umno's nationwide roadshow is dangerous and detrimental for the future of the country while PKR Youth said it was a desperate attempt by Umno to win the trust of the people.
- TMI
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