Anwar to be sworn in tomorrow

Source : Malaysiakini

Dewan Rakyat Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia announced this morning that Anwar Ibrahim, the new member of parliament for Permatang Pauh, will be sworn in tomorrow.

Anwar makes his return to the House in grand style after an absence of 10 years by winning the Permatang Pauh by-election yesterday with a majority of 15,671.

The de facto PKR leader is also expected to be appointed parliamentary opposition leader for the 81 Pakatan Rakyat MPs.

"The parliament speaker has said Anwar will be sworn in as an MP on Thursday," said Tian Chua, information chief of PKR, which leads the three-member alliance.

"We will all be there to welcome Anwar as the leader of the opposition and the parliament will be very different with his voice," said Tian, who is MP for Batu.

"It is a real morale boost for the Pakatan Rakyat in Parliament."

All eyes now on Sept 16

Anwar yesterday won the by-election in his old constituency of Permatang Pauh with a thumping majority, despite claims of a "dirty tricks" campaign mounted by the ruling coalition to sideline him.

The 61-year-old opposition leader spent six years in jail before the sodomy conviction was overturned in 2004. But he now faces new sodomy charges levelled by a former aide which he says have been concocted by the government.

Anwar has said that the Pakatan Rakyat will be able to form the next government by Sept 16. He needs to secure the support of 30 government defectors in order to topple the coalition.

He told Malaysiakini two weeks ago that one of his first task as opposition leader was to reconnect with those government MPs who had indicated their willingness to defect.

"The prime thing is to get back in contact with those MPs that have given their word that they would support (Pakatan) when I return to Parliament."