By Nurbaiti Hamdan, The Star
The people have been urged to reject racism where power is held based on “skin colour”, PKR adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said.
He said Pakatan Rakyat needed to steer clear from the ‘racism cocoon’ created by shallow-minded people.
“I suggest the Chinese, Indians, Ibans and Kadazans destroy this racist mentality. We need to uphold the principle of brotherhood of mankind,” Anwar said in his keynote address to 1,500 of Pakatan delegates at Wisma MBSA here today in the first ever Pakatan convention.
A total of 500 delegates from each component party of Pakatan attended. Anwar said Pakatan could have not won big in the last general election had they “stuck to the archaic spirit of racism and turn its back on justice.”
“There is a newfound confidence from the young generation of various races in Pakatan. And because of this confidence, we based our principle on which we are presenting today at this convention,” he said.
Meanwhile, PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang, in his speech, urged Pakatan to look into its own weaknesses that gave the opportunity for others to exploit.
He added that the political crisis in Perak should be a lesson learnt for Pakatan.
“Don’t simply choose candidates without being realistic,” said Abdul Hadi, referring to the three former Pakatan assemblymen who jumped ship and became independent.
He said Pakatan must be united even if there were differences in opinion in issues.
“Let us prioritise and work on issues that we agree on. Take time and be patient in discussing issues with differing opinions.
“Today we are discussing our plan to face the next general election,” he said.
No comments:
Post a Comment