Malaysian leader-in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim said he felt “vindicated” after taking his oath as a lawmaker yesterday, marking his return to active politics three years after he was imprisoned for sodomy in a charge that critics said was politically motivated.
The swearing-in ceremony at parliament followed Anwar’s landslide win in a by-election in the southern coastal town of Port Dickson on Saturday, in which he defeated six other candidates. The seat was vacated after a lawmaker from his party quit, paving the way for Anwar’s political comeback.
Anwar, 71, joins his wife, Wan Azizah Wan Ismail — the Malaysian deputy prime minister — and his eldest daughter, Nurul Izzah Anwar, in parliament. He has said that his by-election victory is a “vote of confidence” in the new government.
“I have been deprived of my right from time to time and I had to go through a by-election to come back... I feel vindicated,” Anwar told reporters yesterday.
He said he supports Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad’s leadership in ensuring a stable government, and pledged to focus on parliamentary reforms.
“Our parliament has in the past been considered or dubbed as a rubber stamp... We would like to ensure a new approach where parliament is more effective,” he said.
Once a high-flying member of the former ruling coalition, Anwar was convicted of sodomy and corruption after a power struggle with Mahathir, who was prime minister for 22 years until 2003.
Anwar was freed in 2004, but was once again convicted of sodomy in 2015, charges that he said were concocted to destroy his political career.
Mahathir, 93, has pledged to hand power to Anwar within two years. The deal was struck when the pair, whose up-and-down relationship has long loomed over Malaysian politics, formed an unlikely alliance to take on the government of Najib Razak, who was involved in a massive corruption scandal at 1 Malaysia Development Bhd, a sovereign wealth fund.
Following their stunning election victory, Anwar was designated as Mahathir’s successor.
Anwar was freed from prison and received a royal pardon days after the polls.
Mahathir has said that he would keep his promise to hand over power to Anwar.
“Of course I am happy he is back... We expected him to come back. We knew he was going to win,” Mahathir was quoted as saying by local media yesterday.
Additional reporting by AFP
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