PETALING JAYA: Another loyalist of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim yesterday urged Malaysians not to be taken in by him.
"He has a different face for an urban audience and another for the rural folk," Nalla, as he is better known, told reporters here yesterday.
Nalla's comments come a day after former PKR deputy president Prof Dr Chandra Muzaffar broke a seven-year silence to warn that "if Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim becomes the prime minister, it will be an unmitigated disaster for Malaysia".
Nalla echoed Chandra's comments, saying: "I know his story in and out. I know his character in and out. My advice to Malaysians is don't ever trust Anwar Ibrahim".
"I went to jail for a year for him. I suffered for him and faced the death sentence for him. I suffered business losses for him and look at how I was treated," said Nalla, who was then the Magnum Corporation Bhd public affairs director.
After Anwar was sacked as deputy prime minister by then prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Nalla was charged under the Internal Security Act for unlawful possession of 125 rounds of live Fiocchi 6.35mm ammunition, which carried the death penalty.
The charge was later reduced and Nalla was sentenced to 42 months in jail, which was later reduced on appeal to one year.
After his release, he was invited by PKR president Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, Anwar's wife, and Anwar, to join the party.
"Anwar pestered me to join, so I gave in. He was a friend," he said. His job was to increase the Indian membership, which Nalla claims he did, signing up 10,000 Indians as members.
But, he claimed, people like Azmin Ali, the PKR vice-president, were unhappy about the increasing Indian membership and the effect it would have on the PKR leadership.
Nalla's problems with Anwar began in the run-up to the Ijok by-election last May.
"Anwar told me I could be a candidate. But I said I was not interested. I suggested Krishnasamy, one of our members, but Anwar did not commit himself."
Nalla said he then learnt from PKR members in Ijok that former party treasurer Tan Sri Khalid Ismail had "quietly" opened an operations room and had placed orders for posters.
"One day before nomination, they came to my house to tell me Khalid was the candidate. I told them I knew about it," he said.
Nalla said although he did not like the way Anwar made the decision to pick the candidate for Ijok, he soldiered on and campaigned for Khalid.
"After all, he was my friend," Nalla said.
But the straw that broke Nalla's back was when Anwar told him to withdraw from the contest for PKR vice-president after having initially giving him the green light to contest.
Nalla has since formed the Malaysian Indian United Party to fight for the Indians and is supporting Barisan Nasional.
Nalla also warned Malaysian Indians not to be fooled into thinking Anwar was fighting for them.
"He did not fight for the community while in government and he is not going to do so now," Nalla said.
He added that many others had become disillusioned with Anwar and had left the PKR, including secretary-general Anuar Tahir, supreme council member Saari Sungib, deputy president Abdul Rahman Osman and Youth head Ezam Mohd Nor.
Nalla urged the Indian community not to be taken in by Anwar's perceived support for the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) and its five detained leaders.
"He is merely using the issue to gain support from the Indian community.
"He is not a friend (of the community) but a friendly user," he said.
Referring to Chandra Muzaffar's comments on Monday that during the Kampung Jawa clash between Hindus and Indian Muslims in Penang more than 10 years ago when Anwar was deputy prime minister and had purportedly said that temple bells would not ring in the country if his dictum was not accepted by the Hindus, Nalla said: "I had heard about this from angry MIC members and demanded an explanation from him that very evening, and he said, 'if you are a friend don't ask anything'."
Nalla was a former MIC deputy Youth chief.
Nalla said anyone who regarded Anwar as a friend had better be prepared to be betrayed.
"If he was a good, decent man, he should be sitting as prime minister where Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is. But he is not. He is selfish and ungrateful."
Nalla said on hindsight, Dr Mahathir had judged Anwar correctly.
"What Dr Mahathir said about Anwar is true.
"Although I had to suffer on his (Dr Mahathir) instruction but at least he can now know that what he said about Anwar is true," said Nallakarupan.
His parting words to Malaysians: "Don't make him prime minister. He will destroy the country.
"I am doing this for the nation and the younger generation, not for one race but everyone."
Taken from New Straits Time Online
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