“We invited them because they’re the ones who stepped up to bring change in Melaka and, at the time, Melaka PH was backing them.

“So, to us, just saying thank you is reasonable. But the state election is another matter altogether,” the opposition leader told reporters after an event in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan today.

Anwar said some people had questioned why the four assemblymen were invited to the pre-state election gathering, which was held the same day the Melaka polls were confirmed by the Election Commission (EC).

He also acknowledged DAP’s opposition to fielding Pengkalan Batu assemblyman Norhizam Hassan Baktee under the PH banner and said the coalition would discuss the matter.

According to Anwar, DAP was only against Norhizam contesting as a PH candidate, and not Idris (Sungai Udang), Noor Effandi Ahmad (Telok Mas) and Nor Azman Hassan (Pantai Kundor).

“It’s okay, we will discuss it this evening,” he said, adding that the meeting was a regular pre-state election meet.

With the state polls slated for Nov 20, he voiced concern over possible Covid-19 infections among schoolchildren who have yet to be vaccinated against the virus.

He expressed disappointment at state “leaders” who did not think of this before asking for the state assembly to be dissolved, paving the way for the Melaka polls.

On a separate issue, Anwar expressed his willingness to cooperate with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) over the Pandora Papers leak, although he wants to ensure he can still talk about the issue publicly.

He said he will also seek clarification from the MACC if he can still raise the matter in public, as he wanted the leak to be debated in the Dewan Rakyat.