Rowdy group attacks car carrying Tian Chua, one held

VIDEO 1 | 0.18 mins

VIDEO 2 | 0.16 mins

A group of 50 men, claiming to be members of various right-wing NGOs, turned rowdy last night when a car carrying PKR vice-president Tian Chua left the Penang Chinese Town Hall building at about 11.15pm.

Tian Chua, who was charged on Thursday under the Sedition Act for his remarks allegedly accusing Umno of being involved in the Lahad Datu insurgency crisis, spoke at a 60-table state PKR dinner at the Town Hall, along Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling.

The group kicked the car, punched its windows and threw a helmet and bottles of mineral water while hurling abuses as it was leaving the venue.

"Where is Tian Chua? Tian Chua is the enemy of the state!" decried the protesters, while someone shouted, "I had a friend who died in Lahad Datu."

When contacted, Tian Chua, who was on his way out of Penang at that time, said via a text-message "I can't stay. Have to avoid the confrontation."

Earlier, during the dinner, Tian Chua said BN was using state apparatus to charge him with sedition but did not act against leaders of right-wing group Perkasa who "are the ones uttering seditious remarks and the ones rallying outside".

"They can keep on chasing me everywhere and create chaos but to say I humiliate the police force is pure fabrication," he added, saying he would not retract his statement on Umno's involvement in the Sulu standoff in Sabah, which left scores of people dead.

Venue heavily guarded by police

The men, who had waited for Tian Chua since 8pm, failed to confront the Batu parliamentarian when he arrived at the venue at about 10pm as the area was heavily guarded by the police, who prohibited the group from entering the venue after he went in.

About 20 Special Branch officers, 20 Light Strike Force personnel - complete with helmets, batons and shields - and a big group of police officers were outside the hall, with two Federal Reserve Unit trucks on standby.

While waiting outside the gates of the Town Hall, the crowd heckled a group of three women and two men who were leaving the premises about 10.30pm.

The women responded angrily and gestured with their fists, but the police intervened and stood guard while they left for their cars which were parked a few hundred meters away.

As the diners, many of whom were senior citizens, were leaving the venue after the dinner, the group tried not to frighten them by saying, "Our target is Tian Chua, no one else."

"Who knows some of these people vote for BN," said a protester, while another told them, "Don't forget to vote for BN."

About 10 minutes after Tian Chua left, George Town OCPD Gan Kon Meng, who arrived in a peach-coloured batik shirt, gave orders for the crowd to leave.

He told journalists that Komtar trader activist - Mohamad Ghani Abdul Jiman - a vocal critic of Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng - had been arrested under section 186 of the Penal Code for allegedly trying to obstruct police from doing their duty.

"We will lodge a police report and investigate. We are doing our best," said Gan, adding that the illegal assembly would be probed under section 91 of the Peaceful Assembly Act (PAA).

When asked why no action had been taken when the group hit the MP's car with a helmet and bottles, Gan said, "You must understand that under the PAA, we cannot arrest, we can only control the situation.

"If we disperse the crowd earlier, it would have affected you and even me," he told journalists who met him after the situation was calm, referring to the need to respect everyone's right to assemble.

Communist or patriot?

It is uncertain if the group had damaged any properties around the area, where cars were restricted from using the main road outside the hall due to the protest.

The crowd left the venue at around 11.20pm after being prompted by the police force.

Before the commotion erupted, Pertubuhan Kebajikan al-Ehsan Islamiyah Malaysia deputy secretary Arshad Kassim expressed outrage over Tian Chua's ‘sandiwara' comment.

He said he felt slighted by the remark as he was a former army serviceman, adding that Tian Chua did not respect the contribution nor the sacrifices of the security forces.

"Is Tian Chua a communist or a patriot? He tried to provoke the people with his statement, and until now he continues to say it is a ‘sandiwara'," said Arshad.

"What if we accuse him and Pakatan leaders of being behind the incursion, how would he feel?" he asked.

Arshad said 10 NGOs, including Pekida, Persatuan Mukabuku Pulau Pinang and Pertubuhan Kebajikan Insan Mulia, were part of last night's protest.

State Perkasa Youth chief Mohd Rizuad Mohd Azudin (photo) and former state PKR wanita chief Aminah Abdullah, who has joined Umno, were spotted among the crowd.