SUNGAI BULOH, Feb 11 — Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s supporters will assemble every night outside the gates of the Sungai Buloh prison until the Opposition Leader gains his freedom, PKR’s Chua Tian Chang said tonight, ignoring advice from the police earlier to call off the party’s plan.

Chua, who was speaking to a group of some 200 people gathered outside the prison tonight, earned cheers when he urged them to return nightly as a sign of solidarity for their imprisoned idol.

“Every night we will be here to show our solidarity... Until justice prevails.

“This is a very important cause. Having experienced prison (myself)... we are lonely, we always feel the encouragement when we hear news of people assembling, our supporters are with us.

“This enables us to have strength to endure another day,” Chua said.

Demonstrators enthusiastically chanted “Reformasi” and “Hidup Rakyat” as they lined candles along the barbed wire barricade blocking their entrance.

About 30 prison guards in riot gear stood by and watched from afar.

Chua explained that the candle symbolises the passion to keep fighting for Anwar’s release and for the nation to see positive reform.

“Don’t we let this candle, this fire be extinguished even with violence and oppression and anything. We will always be loyal to our friend,” Chua said.

Anwar’s son, Ehsan, also got up to address the crowd but left the makeshift podium mid-speech when he got too choked up to continue.

“This is for the people and the judicial system, which is flawed,” he said.

“Thank you again everyone for coming, on behalf of my family,” he stopped mid-sentence, as the crowd cheered him on and shouted words of encouragement.

He later distributed postcards with a caricature of Anwar, asking supporters to mail words of encouragement to his father behind bars.

Earlier today, Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar urged PKR to call off its plan to hold nightly vigils outside the Sungai Buloh prison, telling party president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail that the police have more important matters to attend to than keep watch over her husband’s supporters.

According to an Astro Awani report, Khalid said he would instruct his officers to negotiate a cancellation with PKR.

“When they gather, the police have to allocate resources for monitoring. If the gathering goes on, we will have to use a lot of resources to ensure things stay peaceful.

“The police have much more important things to do than take care of Wan Azizah and her people outside of jail. I hope she will think rationally about this matter,” the IGP was quoted saying.

Prison officers stand outside the gates of the Sungai Buloh prison in Kuala Lumpur February 11, 2015. — Picture by Saw Siow Feng

Khalid also pointed out that Dr Wan Azizah had not applied for a permit to hold the gathering.

“For a permit to be approved, the venue must give their permission, based on the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012,” he reportedly told Astro Awani.

Last night, Dr Wan Azizah announced PKR’s plan to hold nightly vigils outside the Sungai Buloh prison where Anwar is currently held for his sodomy conviction.

Anwar’s comrades from Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and supporters of the pact have been urged to take up the Opposition Leader’s mantle in the days ahead as he serves out his jail sentence, the third incarceration in his political career.

The Federal Court had yesterday upheld the Court of Appeal’s conviction of Anwar for sodomising his former political aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, also keeping a five-year jail sentence.

With the jail sentence, Anwar now stands to lose his Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat as the law bars anyone fined over RM2,000 or imprisoned more than one year from serving as a lawmaker, unless a free pardon is granted.

The decision also leaves the PR opposition pact without a leader.