Rahimi was 'coerced' to implicate Najib, Rosmah ?

Just as the Election Commission (EC) announced Nov 4 as polling day for the Galas by-election, and the nation witnesses its 12th by-election since the watershed March 2008 general elections.

A press conference believed to be linked to Anwar Ibrahim's ongoing sodomy trial by his former aide Rahimi Osman was cancelled following disruption by a rowdy group of six individuals.

Anwar Ibrahim's former aide Rahimi Osman has claimed that he was coerced to sign two statutory declarations in relation to accusations that the former had sodomised another aide, Saiful Bukhari Azlan.

Rahimi told reporters that he had lodged a police report at the Klang district police headquarters at 2pm today over two statutory declarations made in 2008.

“The police report is to say that the prior two statutory declarations are not accurate,” said Rahimi's lawyer S Ravi Chandran.

According to Rahimi's police report, the first statutory declaration was signed on June 28, 2008 at the Quality Hotel, Shah Alam.

The second was signed several days later in Petaling Jaya.

On June 28, Anwar and his followers had gathered at Quality Hotel, hours after Saiful lodged a police report alleging that he had been sodomised by Anwar.

Rahimi claimed that he second statutory declaration was to amend the content of the first document which had implicated Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and his wife Rosmah Mansor in an alleged conspiracy over Anwar's second sodomy trial.

"Both statutory declarations are totally untrue. I was forced to sign them. I was not given a copy of both documents.

“Because the statutory declarations were untrue, I want to tell what actually happened, thus, I have made a new statutory declaration today which has the true story,” read Rahimi's report.

Rahimi added that he had appended a copy of the latest statutory declaration with his police report.

According to the Klang police, Rahimi had lodged a report alleging that he was pressured by Anwar's men into making the two statutory declarations.

A former aide to Anwar in 2007 and 2008, Rahimi was said to be his closest assistant during the General Election campaign.

He was recruited into the staff in March 2007 to update Anwar's blog, after he dropped out of studies in the International Islamic University Malaysia (UIA).

Rahimi, who was then stationed at the Section 16 of Petaling Jaya office was part of the staff which also included now elected representatives, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, Sim Tze Tzin and Anwar's daughter Nurul Izzah.

Also on staff was Nathaniel Tan who was running another office at Phileo Damansara.

"Rahimi joined as a volunteer at first. But he had somehow become Anwar's appointment keeper during the general election period when all of Anwar's aides were busy with their campaigns," said fellow staff Farhash Wafa Salvador.

Rahimi was schoolmates with Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, at SMK Damansara Utama.

Saiful was also an aide of Anwar's, and who is alleged to have been sodomised by the opposition leader.

It was Rahimi who introduced Saiful to his then boss.

According to Farhash, who was Anwar's political program coordinator then, Rahimi was dismissed from the staff on suspicion of questionable financial practices.

"Rahimi was paid about RM3000 but at that time had managed to buy a car and hire a chauffeur.".

He added that he was present at Quality Hotel when Rahimi signed the two statutory declarations which he claimed he was forced into signing.

"He came voluntarily and left on his own. We continued giving him a stipend of about RM3000 for several months after as he was still coming to the office on and off to do odd jobs. " he said.

The Anwar Ibrahim Club founder added that Anwar and "more than twenty people from Keadilan" attended Rahimi's wedding last year.

Others close to Rahimi during the same time, contacted by Malaysiakini but have chosen to remain anonymous, confirmed the information.