New Party Dr M To Look Into Anwar S Remark On Joining Harapan

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Dr Mahathir Mohamad said he does not know about Pakatan Harapan chairperson Anwar Ibrahim saying they were ready to work with Mahathir’s new party in the coalition
However, the former prime minister said he would look into Anwar’s statement
“I do not know what he (Anwar) said. I will look into it,” he told reporters after attending a solidarity with Kashmir programme in Kuala Lumpur today
Mahathir was asked to comment on Anwar’s statement that he was ready to consider letting Mahathir’s new party into Harapan if they asked
However, Anwar added there had been no such request from the former Bersatu chairperson so far
Mahathir had yesterday announced the formation of an “independent” Malay party which he said would not be affiliated with any quarter including Harapan and Warisan
He had also said that this new party did not need to be big as long as it had committed members
Though Mahathir conceded that his new party would not be able to win enough seats to form the government, he said they could become a force in deciding who wins the next general election
Anwar had also said yesterday that since Mahathir's announcement had just been made, he would prefer to wait and see the situation first
Meanwhile, Mahathir, who is also the Langkawi MP, said during the solidarity event today that he would like to use his time to defend Kashmir now that he was no longer in the government
He said this was because he was limited in what he could do when he was still the prime minister, evident when India threatened to boycott Malaysian palm oil after Mahathir spoke out about Kashmir
“Now I am no longer the prime minister, I think I can now speak without restrictions on the issue of Kashmir without threats of boycotts and so on
“Those who made such threats felt that I, as the Malaysian prime minister at that time, should have been more diplomatic in my speech and they misinterpreted my words,” Mahathir said. - Mkini

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