Pas Rallies Against Anwar Amid Reform Stalemate

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POLITICAL analyst Roslan Shahir criticised calls for Malaysians to help Prime Minister (PM) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, describing it as a desperate move showing growing public rejection of his leadership.
Roslan referred to Prof Wong Chin Huat’s article in Sinar Harian in which he urges support for Anwar.
PAS is seizing on the judicial crisis fiasco to rally its supporters and the wider public ahead of the planned mass protest on July 26 at Dataran Merdeka. The party hopes that a large turnout will drive home their message: that Anwar’s leadership is losing public support.
On the other hand, backing the PAS move, Roslan said Anwar has failed to fulfil election promises and his reform agenda was merely to gain power, as issues like corruption, cronyism, and rising living costs remain unresolved.
Roslan stated that people have lost faith in Anwar and pledged support for the upcoming protest, declaring it the true voice of the people demanding leadership change.
He made these remarks in response to Prof Wong Chin Huat’s warning that if Anwar fails to implement governance reforms, such as ensuring judicial independence, he risks losing public support to Perikatan Nasional, which is portraying itself as a cleaner and more credible alternative.
In this article, Prof Wong Chin Huat uses an old Cold War joke to illustrate that truths are often hidden as state secrets.
He discusses the recent controversy over leaked minutes from the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) meeting, which allegedly showed a judge with misconduct issues still being proposed as Chief Judge of Malaya.
Prof Wong argued that if investigations are for spreading false information, it would prove the judiciary is clean. But if they focus on leaking state secrets, it implies the allegation is true.
He stressed that Anwar and his government should use this crisis to strengthen judicial independence rather than punish whistleblowers.
Wong suggested tightening the JAC Act so judge appointments are truly determined by the JAC, not by the PM. He frames the PM’s role as similar to a “postman” conveying recommendations to the King, which would not diminish his dignity but instead uphold judicial freedom under Anwar’s Madani government.
He further highlighted that Anwar’s daughter, Nurul Izzah’s presence at the Bar Council’s “March for Justice” signals that Anwar might be ready to reinforce judicial integrity.
Prof Wong ends by urging Anwar’s loyalists to listen to reform voices within his coalition, like Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli, instead of attacking them, concluding:
“If you love Anwar, then help him raise the flag of reform high and proud. Reform does not necessarily need Anwar, but Anwar certainly needs reform.” — Focus Malaysia

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