Have you no shame? – Saiful Bukhari booed at PD nomination centre

PORT DICKSON: Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan (pic), who is contesting as an independent candidate in the Port Dickson polls, has experienced a rough start to his campaign with jeers directed at him on nomination day (Sept 29).

When Returning Officer Khairy Maamor announced his candidacy at the nomination centre in the Port Dickson Municipal Council hall, he was loudly booed.

Some even shouted: "Tak tahu malu kah” (Have you have no shame?).

The jeering appear to contradict Pakatan Harapan’s pledge to not resort to personal attacks in the election campaigns. PKR secretary-general Datuk Saifuddin Nasution had on Friday (Sept 28) said: “If they throw s*** at us, we will give them flowers”.

Anwar, who spoke at a press conference shortly afterwards, said he would advise his supporters not to resort to personal attacks, but he also said Saiful’s “malicious” accusations in the past should be taken into account.

“I will advise them, of course. But then, one can appreciate the malicious efforts on his part in the past.

“It is easier to say forgive and move on, but (you) also have to appreciate the concerns of many who were deeply hurt and who suffered in the process.”

Anwar said he was unfazed by the prospects of Saiful using the sodomy allegations as a campaign tactic against him.

“That is his issue, and I don’t want to interfere. I want to focus on my work, and I think the leadership is taking the same decision as well.”

Earlier, the two shared an awkward moment when they briefly shook hands before entering the nomination centre.

“Well, I can’t wait to see him inside. It’s been a long time since I met him,” said Saiful when met by reporters.

Saiful gained notoriety in 2008 when he accused Anwar of sodomising him at a condominium in Damansara, triggering a sensational national court case.

Anwar was subsequently acquitted by the High Court in 2012 of the sodomy charge.

However, the acquittal was overturned by the Court of Appeal in March 2014, and he was slapped with a five-year jail term that stopped him from contesting in the 14th general election.

Following Pakatan Harapan’s landmark victory in GE14, Anwar was released from prison after a full and immediate pardon by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Muhammad V.