Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim said Thursday that police arrested him for alleged sodomy because of a personal vendetta among the top brass, and insisted they have no case against him. “I don't deserve this. No Malaysian deserves this. Why treat me as a major criminal and a public enemy?” Anwar told reporters after being freed on 150,000 ringgitt (US$47,000) bail. “Mind you they have no case against me.” Anwar was arrested Wednesday for questioning over allegations that he sodomized a 23-year-old male aide – the second time in a decade that such an accusation has threatened his political career. He was released Thursday after more than eight hours of interrogation. Just before his arrest, Anwar made a complaint claiming that the Inspector General of Police Musa Hassan had fabricated evidence against him in his 1998 sodomy conviction. “I take to task the IGP for this abuse of police power against me,” Anwar said. “The nature of my unwarranted arrest, my overnight incarceration ... (was) an act of personal vengeance against me in retaliation to the report I launched against him.” Anwar has denied the latest accusation as a “fabrication” and a “malicious” attack, but acknowledged it has slowed his bid to recruit defectors from the ruling coalition and seize power by mid-September. The allegation by the male aide, who once worked in Anwar's office as a volunteer, has further muddied Malaysia's politics, which have been in a chaos since the March general elections handed serious losses to the ruling National Front coalition. Anwar's three-party People's Alliance coalition made spectacular gains in the polls, winning 82 seats in the 222-member Parliament, and is now 30 seats short of a majority. Asked if he can still bring down the government in September as promised, Anwar said, “We will come to that. I am just out of lockup,” a tacit acknowledgment that his campaign has suffered because of the sodomy case. Anwar remains a suspect in the case even though he has not been formally charged. He has been told to report to police on Aug. 18. Deputy Inspector General of Police Ismail Omar told reporters that Anwar's arrest was based on a “credible report” of a crime having been committed. “We believe the arrest is reasonable. It would not be just for fun,” he said.
