PAS says Anwar not granted free pardon, hence not qualified to contest PD polls

PORT DICKSON: PAS has said it again.

That Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is not eligible to contest the Oct 13 Port Dickson by-election.

PAS secretary-general Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan said the Yang di-Pertuan Agong had only granted the PKR president-elect a full pardon and not a free pardon.

"To be eligible, Anwar should be given ‘pengampunan bebas’ or free pardon under a different provision of the Federal Constitution, but he wasn't," he told reporters here on Wednesday (Oct 3).

Elaborating, Takiyuddin said the King granted Anwar a pardon under Article 42 of the Federal Constitution.

"As far as we are concerned, that was to reduce his five-year jail term given to him in 2015 for sodomy.

"To our understanding, Anwar would only have been able to contest if he was given a free pardon under Article 48 (1)(e), which touches on when an individual is eligible to contest as a wakil rakyat," he said.

Takiyuddin expressed hope that the Kuala Lumpur High Court will quickly hear an origination motion filed by a registered voter here on Anwar's status.

"The voter had also filed a certificate of urgency for the case to be quickly heard.

"If the court rules that Anwar is ineligible after and if he wins the seat, then he will be disqualified and there will be another by-election," he said.

Takiyuddin said this would further inconvenience voters and be a waste of public funds.

The Federal Court had reaffirmed Anwar's five-year jail term in Feb 15 for sodomising his former aide, Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan in June 2008.

Anwar was released and pardoned on May 16 this year.

Anwar is engaged in a seven-cornered fight in the PKR-orchestrated Port Dickson by-election to pave the way for him to return to Parliament and stake his claim on the premiership of the country.

Others contesting the seat include Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, PAS candidate Mohd Nazari Mokhtar, former Teluk Kemang Umno chief Tan Sri Mohd Isa Abdul Samad. The other three contestants are Stevie Chan, Lau Seck Yan and Kan Chee Yuen.