Name your PM, now that Anwar has ruled himself out

PETALING JAYA: A Barisan Nasional (BN) leader has urged Pakatan Harapan (PH) to name its designated prime minister should the opposition win the General Election, after obvious choice Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim ruled himself out.
Gerakan Youth chief Tan Keng Liang said there should be no reason for PH not to name one, claiming that this is fundamental for any political coalition to decide before contesting in the elections.
"Is their choice now our former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad? How can a coalition lead a country when they can't even decide on their designated prime minister?
"Voters have a right to know who will be a particular coalition's choice for prime minister should they win. This is one of the most important information a voter needs to know before making the right choice," he said in a statement today.
Imprisoned PKR de facto leader Anwar had, on Saturday, announced that he would not offer himself as PH's choice for prime minister and asked that the opposition focus on winning the GE instead, claiming that the choice (of PM) should be in the rakyat's hands.
The opposition has been gunning for Anwar to take up the role of PM if they come out of GE14 victorious, going as far as planning to place an interim premier while they work Anwar out of prison.
PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar, in a Facebook post today, pointed out that there is no prerequisite for any alliance to officially name a prime minister designate or a supreme leader in order to win the GE.
"Didn't Pakatan Rakyat win the majority vote in GE 13 without officially naming a supreme leader or a PM-designate?" she asked.
Nurul Izzah, in urging all to stop talking about the premiership post immediately, said consensus, equality and mutual respect is fundamental for PH to achieve success.
PKR parliamentary whip Datuk Johari Abdul said Anwar's message was loud and clear, and that is not to discuss who should become prime minister any longer.
"He doesn't want the issue (of him being PM or not) to affect preparation for GE. It must be put to rest, so let's focus now on getting ready for the GE and uplifting the welfare of the rakyat," he told theSun today.
Meanwhile, in GEORGE TOWN, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said queries regarding the opposition's choice of PM should they win should be directed at PKR.
The DAP secretary-general said the stand of his party still remained that of Anwar assuming the premiership if PH managed to win Putrajaya in the coming general election.
"You should ask PKR," he said today when reporters asked him about the jailed opposition leader not offering himself as the PH prime minister candidate.
Lim said his party was "completely left in the dark" regarding the issue.
"This is the first time I heard about this," he added.