Anwar justifies meeting with Duterte
PETALING JAyA: Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim took to Twitter to respond to questions on why he met Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte when he is not a Cabinet member.
The PKR president, who is Pakatan Harapan’s choice as the next prime minister, is on vacation and met Duterte the Malacanang Palace in Manila, Tuesday.
“We discussed initiatives to improve cooperation in terms of economy and security between Malaysia and the Philippines,” Anwar wrote.
His explanation did not go down well with Twitter user Fazrin Ismail who asked the Port Dickson MP whether he had the authority to have a discussion with the president.
“What is your role in the Cabinet? Isn’t this the job of the Defence Minister or were you under instructions from the Prime Minister,” Fazrin tweeted.
Anwar responded by saying he was invited to meet the president.
Fazrin fired back, saying defence and security was Defence Minister Mohamad Sabu’s responsibility.
“Even the Deputy Prime Minister does not have the right to take part in matters involving the country’s defence, what more a normal Member of Parliament,” Fazrin wrote.
Anwar retweeted the message and wrote: “Repeat. Invited.”
In July, Duterte paid a courtesy call on Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad in Putrajaya, with the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) describing the relationship between the two countries at its best level.
Dr Mahathir and Duterte expressed their fulfilment of the excellent current state of bilateral relations.
The PMO said Malaysia had also expressed its support towards the peace and development in Mindanao, southern Philippines.
We discussed initiatives to improve cooperation in terms of economy and security between Malaysia and the Philippines. Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim