Ngeh denies poison pen donation claims, slams BN black-hands

Ngeh with DAP adviser Kit Siang

Wong Choon Mei, Malaysia Chronicle

UPDATED Perak DAP chairman Ngeh Koo Ham has rubbished the contents of a poison pen letter accusing DAP assemblymen and Members of Parliament of having each received a slice of a RM21.5 million kickback from timber operators, slamming the BN especially Umno as being the “black hands” behind the ploy to discredit the state Pakatan Rakyat.

“This has got nothing to do with MP Kulasegaran. We all received a copy of this poison pen letter, which I wish to point out is unsigned and completely rubbish, way before the so-called Kula outburst,” Ngeh told Malaysia Chronicle.

“If there is even a drop of truth in the allegations especially with all the data furnished in the letter so pat and complete-looking, all the Perak DAP, PAS and PKR assemblymen would already be in jail. Or being prosecuted by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission. Just imagine, Zambry doesn’t have to fight Pakatan any more for the control of Perak. Maybe general elections are sooner than we all think after all.”

The surat layang culture

Former Mentri Besar Nizar Jamaluddin has also been following the recent developments with what he described as "great suspicion and fear" that unseen hands were out to finish off the DAP, the lynch-pin in the Perak Pakatan.

Kula and Kit Siang in Parliament

"It is obvious someone is orchestrating the incident. Now Kula may be having his problems with his colleagues but that's their internal affair. This poison pen letter is different. Frankly, it smacks of Umno culture - not Pakatan," Nizar toldMalaysia Chronicle..

"If Kula is brave enough to want to hold a tell-all press conference, he won't be so cowardly as not to sign this sort of surat layang. That is not Kula at all. And the biggest joke, this letter has actually been out for a while now but it has been twisted by the reporter in such a way as to make it seem that Kula only now circulated it. Even though he is in Nepal."

Another Najib-Zambry exercise

Perak is now governed by Umno Mentri Besar Zambry Kadir. Despite his efforts, he has found it tough to strike a rapport with the majority of Perakians, who are still sore at the way Prime Minister Najib Razak orchestrated a coup d'etat in 2009 by luring defectors from Pakatan over to the BN.

Najib schemed the Perak power grab

Although, BN has denied approaching Pakatan assemblymen with the view of getting them to switch allegiance, some say with enticements amounting to millions of ringgit, former DAP assemblyman Keshvinder Singh just last week announced he would be joining the PPP - an Indian-based component party that does not have any elected representatives.

"I guess it is all starting again. Zambry has been taking it quiet after it was exposed that he had alienated huge hectares of land to his cronies at the expense of aqua farmers and other villagers. He needs to muddy Pakatan in order to make Umno look good. There is no other way - he has to kill the people's trust for the Pakatan because there is no way he can build trust for the BN," said Ngeh.

Taking advantage of the Kula-Ngeh-Nga row

Last weekend, out-of-blue, a long-simmering row broke out between Kulasegaran and Ngeh. Kula, who is also the Perak deputy chairman, was upset because he felt that Ngeh and his cousin Nga Kor Ming, the Taiping MP, were too domineering and wanted to control all party activities.

Nizar - perhaps the most popular man in Perak

His concerns were that the cousins might steamroll over all other DAP candidates in the party's internal elections due next month. Kula accused Ngeh of closing down historic branches, where the latter did not enjoy strong support and opening new ones in ares where he was popular. Kula threatened to reveal more of Ngeh's misdeeds at a press conference but was ordered by party elders to cancel it.

A similar gag order was slapped on Ngeh and Nga, who had denied Kula's accusations and wanted to do their own tell-all. It ended with Kula going on a scheduled holiday to Nepal on Sunday. Ngeh apologised to the Perak people and to his party mates including Kula for his part of the outburst and a few days later, Kula also expressed remorse.

But the day after Kula posted his message on his blog, a group of about 20 men purporting to be his supporters staged a protest urging him not to allow himself to be bullied. Perak DAP vice-chairman A Sivanesan and Taman Pertama branch chief Tang Yaw Hooi have said none of the group were DAP members after checking through their membership lists.

Who has most to gain

Meanwhile, the poison pen letter was sent out early last week and received by almost every Perak Pakatan assemblyman and Member of Parliament. It claimed that timber operators had donated RM21.5 million in gratitude for receiving timber concessions from the Pakatan state government when it was in power.

Zambry - upset many with his arrogant behavior

It said this sum was split between DAP's 19 state assemblymen and six Members of Parliament.

It also alleged that Nizar's administration had granted 43 timber concessions to DAP and 30 each to PAS and PKR. The unsigned letter also furnished details of the timber companies, the number of lots given for logging, their allocations, as well as the lot numbers of the timber areas.

"It is utter rubbish. Where is the proof? There is so much detail in the letter, how come there is no proof? With so much information, the MACC would have prosecuted us already. This is why I urge all Perakians, stay calm. Think and reason through and it will be very easy to deduce who the real culprits are behind this whole scam? Just ask, who has the most to gain from a Pakatan in disarray?" said Nizar.