By Zefry Dahalan
SEREMBAN: About 8,000 people braved pouring rain to attend the launch of the Semboyan Halilintar ke Putrajaya (lightning war to Putrajaya) ceramah in Seremban 2 last night.
The campaign by PKR and its Pakatan rakyat partners, aimed at capturing support ahead of the next general election in 2011, was led by PKR supremo Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.Other charismatic speakers at the gathering were DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang and PAS secretary-general Datuk Mustafa Ali.
Despite the recent exodus of PKR MPs and Anwar's sodomy trial still hanging, support for Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and Anwar particularly, has not waned, judging by the huge turnout.
When Anwar arrived at the ceramah location, vociferous chants of "Reformasi", "Hidup Anwar" and "Hidup Rakyat" erupted from the crowd.
They kept it up when Anwar took to the stage to address the crowd and as he was leaving at 12am.
Any apprehension that the crowd may dwindle because of the downpour which started at 10pm, an hour before Anwar was to deliver his speech, evaporated as they stood unfazed.
Anwar explained the Semboyan Halilintar ke Putrajaya campaign to the crowd and his mission to capture the federal government.
Offered to resign as opposition leader
He also highlighted many of the abuses perpetrated by the Barisan Nasional government and issues plaguing local politics. He also touched on his "Sodomy 2" trial.
"I'm confident. We will prove we can capture Putrajaya and bring about changes and improve the welfare of the rakyat," Anwar said to thunderous applause.
He also told the crowd that after the three MPs deserted PKR, and gave DAP the edge in the numbers, he nevertheless received strong support from both DAP and PAS.
"I offered to step down as opposition leader, but Kit Siang came and declared his party's support and asked me to lead the opposition in Parliament.
"PAS president Datuk Seri Hadi Awang also declared undivided support from PAS when he asked all the PAS MPs to sign a declaration supporting me," said Anwar.
Anwar ended his speech by urging the crowd to continue supporting the struggles of PR and help its mission by disseminating the right information to the people.
