Syed Saddiq deflects poser on Liu after threatening war on DAP

Bersatu Youth chief Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman sidestepped a question on the DAP disciplinary committee's acceptance of Ronnie Liu's clarification over an article he penned that was critical of Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

According to Syed Saddiq, the focus now should be on the Tanjung Piai by-election in Johor.

"I think the most important thing right now is to focus on the Tanjung Piai by-election and any follow-up discussion will be talked about at the Pakatan Harapan presidential meeting, as has been decided before," he told reporters in Parliament today.

Yesterday, DAP disciplinary committee chief Chong Chieng Jen said Liu's clarification had been accepted, but at the same he advised party members to use internal channels when expressing dissatisfaction with their coalition partners. 

Syed Saddiq was the most vocal critic of the Sungai Pelek assemblyperson's article, titled "Mahathir: The Paper Tiger", published in Malaysiakini last month.

He issued Liu (photo) with a one-week ultimatum to apologise, failing which, the youth and sports minister warned that it would be open season against DAP and its leaders would not be spared either.

The decision to let Liu off the hook did not reflect the serious tone of DAP's organising secretary Anthony Loke, who referred the assemblyperson to the disciplinary committee.

Loke, who is also transport minister, had gone to the extent of describing Liu's article as "an act of sabotage". 

"This statement by Ronnie Liu can be viewed as an act of sabotage, something that is very serious. I see it as an act of sabotage to destabilise and disrupt the harmony of the coalition. It was very uncalled for," he had said.

Interestingly, the decision to accept Liu's explanation came a day after Mahathir, who is also Bersatu chairperson, defended Perak Menteri Besar Ahmad Faizal Azumu (above) for his remarks in a viral video. 

In the video, Faizal lamented about waging a lone battle in Perak against DAP and spoke about his commitment to defending Malay interests and Islam. 

However, Mahathir argued that the menteri besar was forced to explain the real situation in Perak to a hostile group of fisherfolk, who had the impression that Harapan is dominated by DAP.

Liu told Malaysiakini yesterday that he welcomed the disciplinary committee's decision and vowed to continue speaking the truth. 

In his controversial article, he criticised Mahathir's performance and suggested that if the Bersatu chairperson attempted to break up Harapan, the remaining parties - DAP, PKR, Amanah, Warisan and Upko - could still retain the government without Bersatu. - Mkini