Rafizi, who is also economy minister, said as such, the government must ensure political stability continues beyond its one-year administration.
He said the taunts by the opposition had begun just after the 15th general election (GE15) and before the formation of the unity government.
“The opposition has been resorting to this (taunts) for some time. It began during the first week (after GE15), they were claiming they had enough numbers (to form the federal government).
“Later, after Datuk Seri Anwar (Ibrahim) was sworn in (as prime minister), they continued with this political manoeuvring to the extent that investors and the media began to question if the government was going to collapse.”
Rafizi said new claims by the opposition emerged in April and May, including an assertion that they would capture Selangor (in the state elections). When they failed to do that, he said, they claimed there would be a new government on Aug 31.
“We have been waiting until ‘Aug 45’ and there is still no change,” he said in his winding-up speech at the PKR annual congress held at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre here.
Rafizi said the opposition seemed to be devoid of issues to play up and now, it often raised matters related to the popularity of Anwar and the supposed decline of the unity government due to the poor economic situation.
He said the opposition’s claims were merely based on the views of political analysts or surveys that were not based on credible data, evidence and analysis.
“So we take these views with a pinch of salt. If we remember our history, when was it that people ever said PKR and Datuk Seri Anwar were popular?
“And in those days, some people even said PKR was ‘the weakest link’,” he said, adding that such statements were made by several political analysts.
He also said that in PKR’s early days, some political analysts had stated that a party consisting of various ethnic groups would not go anywhere, and that there was no hope for such a thing in this country.
However, he said PKR was not the kind of political party that waits to be praised.
“… Because our decisions can go against the tide, and sometimes our decisions are ahead of the times. It takes time for these intelligent groups of people (analysts) to see things that are based on our evidence, data and sensitivity, that we hear from the voice of the people.
“So, if we want to be a successful party that brings change to the country … even though we are often criticised … brothers and sisters, be faithful. Insya-Allah with PKR, we will continue to create our future,” he said.