KUALA LUMPUR: There will be a breath of fresh air for the local political scene once PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim gets a Royal Pardon, said Tan Sri Dr Rais Yatim.
The former Umno minister said, he expected Anwar to give new aspirations to government policies.
“With his release, all focus will be on him and apart from being thankful to Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, people are interested to listen to the policies and ideas Anwar has for the future of Malaysia.
“So we must observe his aspirations because he may be the next Prime Minister after Dr Mahathir,” he told reporters at the International Institute of Islamic Civilisation and Malay World, here, today.
Rais, who is also International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) president, attended the International Conference on Malay World - China Civilisation.
He said Pakatan Harapan (PH) needed to inculcate the feeling of togetherness within its newly-formed Federal Government.
“This is to ensure that Barisan Nasional’s (BN) weaknesses are not accepted. For instance, the practice of cash is king must be pushed aside.
“The absoluteness of the law must be upheld and I believe Anwar will do such a thing,” he said.
Rais added that he hoped the process of Royal Pardon would go smoothly.
“With that in mind, I advise those responsible in the Royal Pardons (Board) to oversee the process intricately so the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Muhammad V can reach a decision according to the noble legislation,” he said.