PETALING JAYA: The entire purpose of the sex video saga is to make Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim look bad by insinuating that he was the one behind the videos, says Penang PKR vice chairman Jason Ong Khan Lee.

Ong said Anwar did not need to resort to such tactics.

According to him, the person behind the “well orchestrated scheme” had ensured that Anwar would come off looking like the mastermind behind it.

“But the truth is that even without such dirty tricks, … Anwar was well on his way to take over the premiership, so why would he jeopardise his own bright future by being caught in a ‘plot’ that would put him in an unfavourable position?

“I believe the public can see the difference between a sinister plot to unseat Anwar and a pseudo storyline to discredit Datuk Seri Mohamad Azmin Ali.

“Azmin was never promised the prime ministership, and there is no point training arrows on him to ruin his career as he is not the prime minister-in-waiting,” he said in a statement on Thursday (June 20).

Azmin is the Economic Affairs Minister and PKR deputy president.

Meanwhile, commenting on author Yahaya Ismail's actions in “offering” Anwar the chance to purchase his latest book Why Anwar should not be PM for RM400,000, Ong described it as “blackmail”.

“If this is not blackmail, then what is?” he said.

Ong, who is also the Kebun Bunga assemblyman, said Yahaya was seeking “cheap publicity” while riding on Anwar's popularity.

Yahaya has denied blackmailing Anwar, saying that his offer to the PKR president to buy the copyright of his book was the norm in the book publishing business.

Meanwhile, Anwar said he would leave it to the police to take appropriate action against the author.

Kedah PKR leadership council chairman Datuk Johari Abdul has lodged a police report against Yahaya.

Johari said he received the manuscript on June 10 and subsequently lodged a report alleging that the book was defamatory towards Anwar.