In his closing speech at the PKR national congress here, Anwar said he never met the Bersatu MPs before they decided to declare their support for the ruling government.
“Some said we offered them bribes, that’s not true.
“When they sought to meet me, I told them to make a decision first (to support the government) before meeting me,” he said at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre.
Anwar claimed the MPs decided to switch support after seeing the economic growth brought by his administration.
Previously, the opposition accused Anwar of trying to buy support after four MPs from Bersatu declared that they were backing the ruling government.
They claimed they did so to secure allocations for their constituencies.
The MPs who pledged their support for Anwar are Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Kuala Kangsar), Suhaili Abdul Rahman (Labuan), Azizi Abu Naim (Gua Musang) and Zahari Kechik (Jeli).
On Nov 14, Bersatu Youth chief Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal identified two persons whom he claimed had allegedly enticed opposition MPs into supporting Anwar’s leadership.
Wan Fayhsal said the two – a man dubbed “Datuk Botak” and a former political aide – were shown in a video that had been circulating on Facebook and TikTok.
In response, ex-PKR leader Farhash Wafa Salvador Rizal Mubarak said he would lodge a police report against Wan Fayhsal for claiming that he was involved in enticing opposition MPs to support the government.
Farhash, a former political aide to Anwar, denied Wan Fayhsal’s claims, saying he is no longer involved in politics and is now a businessman. Police have confirmed receiving Farhash’s report and have launched an investigation into the matter.
Visa-free entry
On a separate matter, Anwar announced that travellers from China and India will enjoy 30 days’ visa-free entry into Malaysia starting Dec 1.
“We will relax our visa rules and upgrade existing facilities. Currently, countries like Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the US, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Iraq, and Iran, as well as all West Asian nations, including Turkey and Jordan, are already enjoying a visa exemption,” he said.
However, this relaxation of rules would still be subject to security screenings for criminal records.
Previously, when tabling the 2024 budget, Anwar, who is also the finance minister, said the government would ease visa-upon-arrival processes while multiple entry visas would be offered to tourists and investors from India, China and the Middle East.
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