SHAH ALAM – Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has wished Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob all the best should he be sacked from Umno, which is said to be pressuring him over several demands, including early polls.
“If Umno decides to sack the prime minister, good luck to Ismail Sabri,” he told reporters at a press conference at PKR’s election convention here today.
Asked if he would back Ismail Sabri if he was dismissed from Umno, Anwar said the topic had not been discussed.
“I have not been informed and there have been no discussions on this issue,” the PKR president said.
Ismail Sabri is a vice-president in Umno, which typically appointed its party president as prime minister while Barisan Nasional was in federal power.
The Bera MP, however, is said to be under pressure from his party led by Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
This is according to sources who told The Vibes that Umno warlords have four demands for Ismail Sabri, who faces the sack as vice-president should he fail.
The demands are purportedly the removal of the attorney-general and chief justice, a royal pardon for Najib, and to immediately call for a general election.
This follows the Federal Court’s decision on Tuesday to uphold former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s conviction and sentence in the SRC International Bhd case, sending him to jail in Kajang Prison immediately.
However, various Umno leaders have denied that such demands will be made of Ismail Sabri, and said Umno division heads only want him to hold the general election soon.
Another sign that pressure is mounting for Ismail Sabri to concede to demands for a snap election is Putrajaya’s rescheduling of the tabling of Budget 2023, which has been brought forward from October 28 to October 7.
Speculation that the 15th general election will be held this year soon after the budget is tabled has been rife since. – The Vibes, August 27, 2022
