Anwar-Najib debate's date to be announced by the weekend

SHAH ALAM - The much-touted debate between PKR President Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and BN adviser Datuk Seri Najib Razak will be announced either tomorrow or the day after.

In a brief Facebook post by Isham Jalil, Najib's close aide, said the date of the debate will be announced through a joint press conference by representatives of both political leaders.

"I would like to inform that we and Datuk Seri Anwar have agreed to a date for the debate and this date along with other related matters will be announced through a joint press conference by Datuk Seri Najib and Datuk Seri Anwar's representatives that will be conducted by tomorrow or the day after.

The debate will centre on whether the government should bail out Sapura Energy, which is facing financial woes at the moment. Najib had called for the government to save Sapura Energy, which drew a retort from former Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli.

Among the issues disputed was the propriety of its chief executive officer being given such a lucrative salary.

Back in March, Rafizi said Najib - who was prime minister at the time - failed to safeguard the interests of public institutions through Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) and Pensions Trust Fund (KWAP) who are shareholders in the company.

After examining Sapura Energy's financial records, Rafizi said an executive director representing the majority of the shareholders earned almost RM1.1 billion from 2009 to 2021 in the form of salaries, bonuses, rent, intellectual property fees and other forms of remuneration.

This led to exchanges of words between Rafizi and Najib and move for a debate, in which Najib then demand that Anwar be involved as well.

Rafizi perceived this move by Najib as him being afraid to go head-to-head with him but ensured that he would extend the invitation.

The Selangor Barisan Nasional Information Chief Isham Jalil suddenly got into the mix after voicing out his intentions to stand in for Najib if Anwar refuses to enter the ring, as suggested by the former prime minister himself.

Anwar had since agreed to the debate.