2 days ago
On-the-ground Ramasamy: ‘Turun Anwar' rally attracted '150k-200k turnout despite slight shower'
THE Turun Anwar rally yesterday (July 26), was a tremendous success in terms of the numbers that turned out; with the crowd stretching from Sogo to Masjid Negara, it was a virtual ocean of crowd.
The conservative and deliberate attempts to convey picture of 10,000 to 15,000 participants pales in significance to the actual turnout from 150,000 to 200,000 – even the slight shower did not dampen the enthusiasm of the crowd.
Some leaders of the opposition could have exaggerated the extent of the size of the crowd that swelled on the Saturday afternoon.
But the numbers were there to prove beyond doubt that it was decisive rally that wanted Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to relinquish his position.
It was essentially a proverbial case of Anwar getting the taste of his own medicine in calling for the reformasi movement when he was in the opposition.
Mostly all the senior leaders of Perikatan Nasional (PN) – from centenarian twice former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to the coalition's chairman/Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to PAS president Tan Sri Hadi Awang – were present to address the crowd on why Anwar has to go.
Non-Malay rally-goers
Judicial interference, the deliberate use of the MACC to prosecute the opposition leaders, the downplaying of incidents of corruption among leaders of the Pakatan Harapan (PH)-led coalition, the spiralling cost of living, the hypocritical package of sweeteners, Anwar's own personal involvement in sexual misconduct and plenty other issues were raised as to why he has to go.
Although the those who gathered were mainly Malays coming from different states, there was significant presence of Chinese and Indian participants.
Gerakan brought the Chinese crowd while Urimai (United Rights of Malaysian Party) and the MIPP (Malaysian Indian People's Party) roped in the Indian crowd.
Urimai's supporters from Penang, Selangor, Federal Territory and Negeri Sembilan marched together from the 'famed' Dewi Sri Pathrakaliamman Hindu temple in Jalan Masjid India to join the crowd at Sogo.
Urimai deliberately made the starting point at the Hindu temple that was forcefully relocated under the direction of Anwar supported by the shameless Indian sycophants in the DAP, PKR and MIC on March 27 to make way for the Masjid Madani.
The temple has yet to be relocated and if Anwar and his government falls in power, I assured the crowd that the Hindu place of worship 130-years old would remain in the present place.
Although I am not superstitious, many Hindus believe that Anwar's growing unpopularity could be due to his forceful and undemocratic move to relocate the historic and heritage temple that was built during the colonial days.
Remember that it was on the same date in the late 1990s that Anwar was responsible for forcefully relocating a Hindu temple in Kampung Rawa in Penang arising out of ethnic and religious clash be Hindus and Muslims.
Yesterday's rally was the beginning and not the last in the public wanting the removal of Anwar from holding the position of prime minter.
With a matter of two-years, Anwar has proven to be an ineffective leader who says one thing for public consumption and does another for political expediency.
Anwar is not interested in managing the country to the best of his ability but to stay as premier for as long as he can. There is general feeling in the country that Anwar has outlived his usefulness and has to go before the country plunges into further the crises.
As the Malays have made up their mind that Anwar has to go, the Chinese and Indians must decide sooner or later. Sitting on the fence expecting Anwar to emerge miraculously from the present crisis is nothing but a very tall and impossible order.
Asking questions like who is going to be Anwar's replacement and others seem to be planted by the cheerleaders seeking to prolong his stay in power.
Anwar wants the opposition to take the parliamentary route to decide whether he should remain the PM or not by passing a vote of non-confidence knowing very well that they don't have the required numbers.
As one opposition leader aptly pointed out, taking the democratic route of mass public gathering is much more effective in showing Anwar's standing than the indirect parliamentary route. – July 27, 2025
Former DAP stalwart and Penang chief minister II Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is chairman of the United Rights of Malaysian Party (Urimai) interim council.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
