Anwar: It was Lim’s call on dissolution of Penang assembly

PETALING JAYA: Bagan MP Lim Guan Eng’s call for the dissolution of the Penang state assembly is to prevent future issues for the people, says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

The Pakatan Harapan chairman said that Lim had made the personal call for dissolution as he wanted to avoid the risk of increased burden for the people of Penang if the state assembly was not dissolved immediately.

“If we thoroughly read Lim’s statement, we can see that it is a very in-depth assessment of the pros and cons of the effects of dissolution on the people.

“He then personally decided that it would be in the best interest of the people under his care to dissolve the state assembly immediately.

“As a democratic coalition, we discussed this significantly among ourselves in Pakatan and there are also those that have decided the opposite like in Negri Sembilan and Selangor which we also respect,” he said during a press conference at the PKR headquarters yesterday.

Anwar claimed that this predicament was caused by those currently in power that called for Parliament’s dissolution, who he said did not understand the plight of the people impacted by floods.

Anwar also said Pakatan would not be looking to work with other parties unless they share the same goals as Pakatan.

“We are committed to Pakatan’s reform agenda and if they agree with us, they can come talk to us then,” he added.

It was also announced that Bersatu co-founder Rais Hussin and former Umno Bera division deputy chief Mohd Jiddi Yaakob would join PKR for the upcoming GE15.

Anwar said that Pakatan’s manifesto would focus on five aspects which include tackling the rising cost of living, healthcare accessibility, education reforms, improving job opportunities and eliminating corruption at all levels in the government.