KALAU TAK 16-17 SEPTEMBER

JAKARTA - Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim said Saturday he is on track to meet a mid-September deadline to recruit enough members of parliament to topple the government.

The opposition is confident it will secure the defection of at least 30 members from the ruling Barisan Nasional government -- the number needed to unseat the government of Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi, Anwar said.

Anwar, speaking to reporters in the Indonesian capital after meeting with a think tank, said he was "quite positive from the initial response from the members of parliament."

"We have seen some very positive signs, but we have also seen the desperate acts by the government, threats and using institutions to discourage them," he said.

Government attempts to compel members of parliament to travel overseas until after his pledged September 16 deadline to take power would not work, Anwar said."The only issue now is that they are going to compel members of parliament to (travel to) China or overseas until after the 16th of September, so we'll have to deal with that.

Probably we'll meet on the 17th because they'll come back on the 17th," he said.The 61-year-old leader of the three-party Pakatan Rakyat coalition declined to name or give the number of lawmakers who have pledged to defect.

Asked if he had used his two-day trip to Jakarta to meet with potential government defectors, Anwar said: "I won't comment on that, but I will say it's a good visit."

Abdullah, who is facing calls from his party to quit amid plummeting popularity, has said Anwar's push to take power will fail.The parties of Pakatan Rakyat gained unprecedented ground against the Barisan Nasional coalition in the March general election, securing a third of parliamentary seats and five states.

Tinggal sepuluh hari lagi tetapi Anwar Ibrahim menyatakan keyakinanya untuk menumbangkan kerajaan pada 16 September akan menjadi kenyataan.

Beliau yakin akan mendapat sokongan sekurang-kurangnya 30 Ahli Parlimen dari Barisan Nasional – jumlah yang diperlukan untuk menumbangkan kerajaan Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Bercakap kepada pemberita selepas satu mesyuarat dengan sekumpulan ahli pemikir diJakarta, beliau memberitahu terdapat respons yang positif dikalangan Ahli Parlimen. “Kita melihat beberapa perkembangan positif tetapi kita juga telah melihat beberapa tindakan terdesak yang dibuat oleh kerajaan , ancaman dan penggunaan institusi kerajaan untuk menghalang mereka.”

Kerajaan Malaysia telah memaksa Ahli-ahli Parlimen untuk mengikuti satu lawatan keluar negara untuk menghalang Anwar daripada mengambil alih pada 16 September.

Mungkin kita terpaksa melakukannya pada 17 September. Kata Anwar.

Ditanya adakah beliau datang keJakarta untuk menemui mereka yang akan melompat menyertainya, Anwar berkata, “Saya tak mahu komen mengenai hal itu tetapi saya katakan lawatan ini amat baik.”