Obama “salutes” Najib? DPM’s post “very lucrative”? - Anil Netto

A Bernama report titled ‘Obama congratulates Najib on premiership’ has been given a new headline in the NST: ‘Obama salutes Najib’.

If you read the Bernama report carefully, the language is just one of diplomatic courtesy and niceties. It’s the sort of message - often drafted by an underling - that a national leader would regularly send to a new leader elsewhere. Nothing exceptional in there to give the impression of Obama “saluting” Najib - and that too, one and a half months after the latter assumed the top post.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Anifah Aman let rip into Anwar during a joint press conference with Hillary Clinton in Washington - but in the process, he dropped a clanger. The US State Department reported Anifah as saying:

And also just for the information of the audience here that, you know, he also said that he will form a government on 16 September and he has changed the dates many time. And he was trying to entice the members of parliament. And I was personally offered to jump into the oppositions and offered a very lucrative position, and also to be told it’s like a deputy prime minister. And these are not known to the world at large.

This doesn’t make sense. Why did Anifah believe it when he was told that the lucrative position was like a DPM’s post?

How can the DPM’s position be considered lucrative, when even the premiership has only a salary plus allowance that’s far below the RM5 million paid to the chief honcho of Puncak Niaga, the Selangor water concessionaire? Unless Anifah believes that the DPM’s post has other “perks”?

To make matters worse, Anifah said this in Washington - a place where no one would think of describing the vice-presidency - or for that matter, the presidency - as “a very lucrative position”. In trying to slam Anwar Ibrahim, the Foreign Minister has just turned us into a laughing stock.

Anifah should tell us in what way the DPM’s post is similar to a lucrative position. Incidentally, would he consider the Foreign Minister’s position to be “very lucrative” as well?

Anifah added:

And we have lost five states and we willingly and accept the people’s verdict. And all the time we leave it to the people to decide, and which, on the other hand (Anwar) has not been able to accept.

Umm, you accept the people’s verdict (the loss of five states) - and all the time, you leave it to the people to decide? Like in Perak?