Sex clip a jolt for Pakatan
Will the latest sex scandal implicating Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim spell the end of his political career? Much will depend on investigations into the authenticity of the 22-minute video clip.
THE story goes that in 1998, then Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad gave his deputy Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim a choice – quietly retire or face public exposure of his alleged sexual escapades. Anwar, just one step from becoming Prime Minister, chose to stay and fight.
We know how that decision, if true, and the upheavals that followed, have dominated national politics for more than a decade.
Today, 13 years later, a mysterious Datuk T has dumped a massive political bomb by producing what he claims are hard CCTV visuals showing a man resembling an opposition party leader having sex with probably a foreign woman at a hotel. Anwar has strenuously denied that he is the man in the video.
Those who saw the video say there is a striking resemblance between the man in the video and Anwar. The PKR leader at a press conference on Monday admitted there is a resemblance but said the man in the video has a bigger belly.
On a more serious note, Anwar said during the time stamped on the video (about 10.30pm on Feb 21), he was at home with his staff and family members.
While senior PKR leaders immediately rallied around Anwar and were quick to assert that the video was “doctored” without even viewing it, DAP and PAS leaders have not jumped on the denial bandwagon. Instead, they are extremely worried, visibly shaken and desirous of knowing the truth. Their number one worry is how badly this latest scandal implicating Anwar, if true, would impact on their performance in the big election battle ahead.
“We are not worried about the Sarawak election,” a senior DAP leader said.
“We are more worried how this scandal will affect our performance in the general election.
“We are hoping the video is not true. This is indeed a black Monday for us,” he added on condition of anonymity.
Throughout Monday night, DAP and PAS leaders were trying to ascertain the authenticity of the video clip. They contacted and tried to get the truth from those who had viewed the clip, media insiders said.
PAS leaders, it was learnt, also quizzed a Harakah editor who was also reportedly invited to view the clip by Datuk T and his group.
The big question is whether the clip, which one viewer described as “clear and sharp,” is authentic or doctored? This is the question Pakatan leaders also want answered to better prepare their political parties for the firestorm ahead.
They want to adjust their policies and political strategies to survive what they say could be a massive setback. The Pakatan leaders are also worried about the identity of Datuk T and what else his group has on the scandal.
“Obviously they have not revealed all their cards. We don’t want to rush and say or do anything now and look stupid later,” another DAP leader said.
PAS, which is already under tremendous pressure to distance itself from Anwar over revelations in the ongoing sodomy trial, faces a double whammy if the video turns out to be authentic. PAS ulama council chief Datuk Harun Taib has said the party would end its association with the “senior politician” if the video is true.
Some PKR leaders privately feel Anwar should consider stepping down if he is the man in the video.
As the 2007 “Lingam video clip” episode revealed, a PKR leader said, it is not difficult for experts to verify the authenticity of the 22-minute clip. “Digital doctoring is easy to spot,” she said.
Ironically, it was Anwar who called a press conference and released the “Lingam clip” that was a major political issue in 2007 and helped Pakatan win votes a year later.
However, leaders of both PAS and DAP said they would be standing by Anwar as they believed that the airing of the sex video was politically motivated and had condemned it as a “dirty tactic”.
For now, the issue is clouded with numerous accusations, denials and counter accusations, but eventually it would come down to a simple process of verifying the authenticity of the tape by a competent authority.
Now that Anwar has lodged a police report, it is up to the authorities to investigate and determine the clip’s origins and its authenticity.
Nevertheless, the forecast for Anwar’s political career from now on is grim with the emergence of this new scandal. This is because the video is tightly guarded for now but there is no guarantee that the owners will not play the video or post it on the Internet.
Three major sex scandals in as many decades have dogged Anwar when even one could have killed off any politician’s career. That Anwar has lasted this long is a wonder.
Now that he has denied it is him in the video and has lodged a police report, Anwar and his wife Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail are unlikely to comply with Datuk T’s demand for them to retire.
Their refusal may spark a major political and legal battle with opponents, a clash that could end Anwar’s dream of becoming Prime Minister and deeply injure the Pakatan Rakyat coalition.
Source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/3/23/nation/8324747&sec=nation
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