The Chinese press has reported that Johor DAP chief Liew Chin Tong's predecessor Dr Boo Cheng Hau, has teamed up with Tan Hong Pin to oust Liew in the May 2 state party leadership election.
This led Liew to challenge his rivals to name their candidate for the post of Johor DAP chief.
However, in an interview with Malaysiakini, Tan (above), denied plotting with Boo to topple the incumbent.
The Johor DAP secretary also lamented about being turned into a "punching bag", which he quipped could be due to the extra weight he has gained.
"Even my wife does not know what position I will be running for, what more my supporters," he added.
As for the "anonymous sources" cited in the Chinese media reports which implicated him, Tan blamed his detractors for peddling falsehoods but he did not mention names.
"This is an electoral trick. To create an external rival out of thin air. This is not appropriate," he added.
According to Tan, he has been targeted since the 2014 DAP polls, when Liew was first elected to the top post in the state.
The situation, he added, has taken a turn for the worse for the coming polls.
"Maybe I look like someone who is bad, or maybe I look like someone easy to bully. So when someone is criticised or feels threatened, I will be named.
"Maybe I have put on weight recently, so I look like a punching bag.
"This is so unfair to me. In Johor, I will always be named whenever someone feels threatened. This is very unkind. It is better to be a kind person," he said.
'Fighting his own shadow'
Tan also noted that while Liew spoke at length about his rivals, he did not name anybody.
"In the end, he is just fighting his own shadow," he surmised.
In a recent interview with Malaysiakini, Liew said he is prepared to face a challenge and urged his rivals to reveal their plan for the future of Johor DAP so that both sides can hold a debate.
Tan and Boo would be among 40 candidates participating in the Johor DAP polls, of which only 15 would be elected into the state liaison committee.
Following this, another election would be held where the 15 would decide who among them would be the state chief as well as hold other posts.
Asked if he is eyeing the post of Johor DAP chief, Tan said he would "cross that bridge when I get there".
"Frankly speaking, I hardly conducted any campaign activities. If I can't even make it in the first round of the polls, who am I to say which position I am running for?" he added.
In the 2018 Johor DAP election, Tan was nominated by his supporter Lim Eng Guan, who is also a former Bekok assemblyperson, for the top post and he almost defeated Liew.
Elaborating, Tan stressed he had been cooperative with Liew for years at the expense of being labelled as someone who betrayed his own mentor, Boo.
Tan recalled how he was transferred from Pekan Nenas - a state seat under Tanjung Piai, where he worked for 10 years - to the Mengkibol state seat, which is under Kluang, to assist Liew during the 2013 general election.
Back then, Liew, who hails from Penang, was fielded in the Kluang parliamentary seat.
"I worked in Pekan Nenas for almost 10 years, and I was only waiting for (party secretary-general) Lim Guan Eng to announce me as the candidate for the seat.
"A dinner was held in Pekan Nenas, and everyone was waiting for Guan Eng to announce that I am going to be the candidate. But nothing happened.
"Why? Because Liew made a call and told Guan Eng not to announce first as he wanted me to help him to contest the Kluang seat.
"Fortunately, DAP won the parliamentary and state seats," he added.
A similar incident occurred during the 2018 general election, which saw Tan being transferred from Mengkibol to Skudai, replacing Boo, who won the state seat in 2008 and 2013.
Due to this, Tan, a former aide to Boo, was labelled as a traitor. Tan subsequently lost in the 2014 Johor DAP polls but made a comeback in 2015. - Mkini
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