BANGI: Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has played down a DAP assemblyman’s call for him to resign as the Opposition leader following Pakatan Harapan’s disastrous results in the recently concluded Melaka state election.

       He acknowledged there were calls for him to resign but said all views would be considered.

       “That is a view, and it’s okay. We will look into it.

       “But I want to remind you here that opinions shouldn’t be seen as arrogant, otherwise it could trigger unhealthy reactions,” he said.

       Anwar was responding to the media who had asked him to comment on DAP’s Bilut assemblyman Lee Chin Chen’s remarks urging him to step down as Opposition leader and take a backseat following Pakatan’s results.

       In the Melaka polls on Nov 20, PKR lost all seats it contested while DAP won four and Amanah got one.

       Pakatan as a whole only managed to win five seats compared to the 15 it won in the 14th General Election in 2018.

       Elaborating on Pakatan’s performance in the Melaka polls, Anwar said he would take responsibility and said the Opposition’s defeat must be analysed from all aspects.

       “We must look at all aspects because it is not as simple as that.

       “For example, the sentiments of the Chinese, Indians and Malays are different,” he said after attending a book launch at Bandar Baru Bangi here yesterday.

       On Monday, Perak PKR chief Farhash Wafa Salvador Rizal Mubarak criticised Lee for calling on Anwar to quit.

       Farhash said Lee’s attempt to single out Anwar as the leader responsible for Pakatan’s defeat in Melaka was unfair.

       Analysts have attributed Pakatan’s defeat in the Melaka polls to its decision to field defecting assemblymen under its banner.

       This included former chief minister Datuk Seri Idris Haron and Datuk Nor Azman Hassan in the Asahan and Pantai Kundor seats respectively, which they both lost.

       Anwar also said that the decision to field Idris and Nor Azman was made by the Melaka Pakatan leadership, which consisted of the state DAP, PKR and Amanah chiefs.

       He said an independent committee would conduct a post-mortem on Pakatan’s results.

       “We want to listen to independent views regarding our results,” he added.

       In the Melaka polls, Barisan Nasional recorded a landslide victory after winning 21 of the 28 seats.

       Perikatan Nasional won two seats, namely Sungai Udang and Bemban.