DR M-ANWAR VS NAJIB-HADI? PKR BOMBSHELL - Dr M contacted Anwar thru 3rd party

KUALA LUMPUR - It looks like there's no getting away with it. The Umno-controlled media has tried to ignore news of former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his wife Siti Hasmah attending the funeral of the father of arch political foe Anwar Ibrahim.

Maybe it's Malay respect for the newly departed but surely the fact that Dr M deigned to be seen in the same place as his former protege - the first ever meeting since he jailed Anwar in 1998 - is sensational news on its own.

It is indeed a political event that may well have significant implications for Malaysia and her ruling party - the incorrigible and corrupt Umno. Yet the Umno-controlled media studiously played down the news.

Zahid zinger

The sudden appearance of Home Minister Zahid Hamidi who gave the green light for Anwar to attend the funeral add an even greater twist.

Neither Mahathir nor Zahid, who claimed they came because they knew Anwar's dad who was a former Umno representative, really needed to be there. They could have sent condolence messages. Why the personal appearances?

Zahid's presence, in particular, raised heckles. Whose side is Zahid on? Why would he attend the funeral when Dr Mahathir is also there? Is Zahid so stupid as to risk losing the trust of his boss Prime Minister Najib Razak, and the latter's powerful wife Rosmah Mansor?

Zahid visibly ill at ease at the funeral

Let's bear in mind, it was also Zahid who was reported to have arranged overseas meetings with Anwar on behalf of Najib over a possible unity government that would have given PKR 4 Cabinet positions, but cuts off DAP and PAS.

Anwar himself has said he rejected the offer because it would betray PAS and DAP. But looking at the way PAS president Hadi Awang has betrayed PKR by rejecting its president and Anwar's wife Wan Azizah as Selangor MB, perhaps Anwar should not have been so idealistic.

Umno revolt against Najib imminent

Dr M made a shock appearance

Obviously, there is more than meets the eye in the awkward meeting. There have been rebellious reports on it the Umno blogs and speculation is rife Mahathir is indeed open to working with Anwar again. There are no permanent enemies or friends in politics after all.

Such a development is of course negative to Najib and given the current situation when he is under fire over the Altantuya murder and the Jho Low-1MDB financial fiasco, any Anwar-Dr M tie-up could spark an exodus of support from the Najib camp to the Mahathir's. And this includes the fence-sitters.

Let's face it, Malays don't really believe or care if Anwar committed sodomy. They know Umno and its leaders. They fought for Anwar in 1998 because the Dr M accusations were simply too unjust. But now they know they cannot change the corrupt system in Umno. Yet they are not ready to abandon Umno either.

Therefore, a gesture from Dr Mahathir that he erred will help to heal many wounds in the Malay community, which split down the line due to the Anwar Sodomy I case in 1998. Many hate Najib for mimicking Mahathir's despotic ways and scripting his own Sodomy II, which has landed Anwar in jail again.

Not surprisingly, Cheras division chief Syed Ali, a well-known Najib sycophant, has rushed to warn that it is a trick from the Opposition. There is no such meeting, no such talks, no such tie-up on the cards. But how does Syed Ali know? He is not an insider in either the Dr M or Anwar camp.

'ALMOST' impossible ally

Tian Chua - Dr M 'wants to crusade this alone'

Some political pundits see the meeting at the funeral as both camps - Najib and Mahathir's - showing each other that if push came to shove, they would strike a deal with Anwar and Pakatan. This explains Zahid's presence - he was representing Najib and Rosmah.

Mahathir and Siti Hasmah - true to their style - represented themselves.

As for PKR, the party in the centre of the whirlwind, they are playing it cool.

According to PKR vice president Tian Chua, Mahathir did approach Anwar but through a middleman. After all, the former PM's goal and that of Anwar's are to an extent the same - to topple Najib.

But while Anwar wants a new Malaysia, it is not yet clear what Dr M wants. However, what Dr M's henchmen have repeatedly said is that Umno and Malaysia needs new blood at the top leadership in the government. PRK may have fallen short of luck but its ranks are bursting with young talent.

"Dr M told us he will crusade this alone. He doesn't like PAS or DAP. He can tolerate PKR but without Anwar. This makes him an almost impossible ally for Pakatan," Tian Chua told Malaysia Chronicle.

"Dr M probably only wants to use us. His primary concern is to revive an Umno that's following his blueprint."

Something big is up

Najib's man Syed Ali has rushed to claim an Opposition ploy

Mahathir himself will surely respond to the Anwar talks speculation. So far, he has been coy. Until he does, most pundits are suspicious there is nothing more than meets the eye. They dismiss the responses that have been made so far, incuding Tian's as facetious. "Something big is up," they insist.

True or not, one thing is for sure. The camp that is watching Anwar with an eagle eye is Najib's. Perhaps this is why they chose to lock him up.

Indeed, Anwar's jailing has left a visible vacuum creating the current instability in the Malay political system. It has shifted the power equation in favor of Dr Mahathir.

Was it miscalculation, or did Najib deem it was still safer to have Anwar imprisoned than having Anwar free and able to close more tie-ups?

Time will tell. And according to people in the know, a very major surprise will take place soon. "Very soon".

Najib chose Hadi over Anwar

Perhaps this is why Najib camp too has been busy finding alternative solutions.

It cannot escape notice that Najib has bent over backwards to help PAS president Hadi Awang stamp out a rebellion by the professionals in the Isamist party.

Najib allowed Hadi's 'hudud' private bill to appear on the Parliament agenda of motions to be debated, helping Hadi to harness a wave of support that may well snuff out the momentum created by the PasMa 'rebels'.

The ultimate winners and losers in Malaysia's complex political game are still forming. But what is clear, Dr M may have chosen more wisely than Najib.

Even should Mahathir eventually retract from an alliance with PKR and other Umno seniors such as Tengku Razaleigh and even Abdullah Badawi, he would have won back the people's support as Malaysians already distrust Najib. And they detest Hadi.

And that may well decide who wins Umno - Dr M or Najib. - Malaysia Chronicle