EC: Okay for Sim to contest as independent as well

As internal pressures mount on Kota Melaka DAP incumbent Sim Tong Him from central party leaders, the Election Commission said it is legally correct for the veteran politician to contest as an independent for a state seat.

EC chairperson Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof when asked whether it was all right for a candidate to contest under a party picket and as an independent as well in this election, he replied that it was legally all right.

"From the legal perspective, the EC has no problem," Aziz said in a text message to Malaysiakini.

Sim, 65, is defending his Kota Melaka parliamentary seat as well as contesting the Kota Laksamana state seat as an independent, for which the official DAP candidate is Lai Keun Ban.

Sim (right) told Malaysiakiniyesterday that he is contesting as an independent for the Kota Laksamana state seat to "save the DAP" as the feedback the party has received from the ground was that many objected to Lai's candidacy.

The Malacca DAP submitted three names for Kota Laksamana, including that of Teoh Lee Lan, the sister of Teoh Beng Hock, the aide to Ean Yong Hian Wah who died under mysterious circumstances at the Selangor Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission headquarters in Shah Alam.

The Kota Laksamana seat was vacated by Betty Chew, who is party secretary-general Lim Guan Eng's wife, who chose not to defend the seat.

Sim, an ISA detainee in the 1980s, is seen as a very popular DAP leader in Malacca, with strong grassroots support.

He was the Malacca DAP chief before Goh Leong San took over, and had held on to the Bandar Hilir state seat for several terms, until he moved to Parliament.

DAP chairperson Karpal Singh, its national adviser Lim Kit Siangand secretyary-general Lim Guan Eng have asked Sim and incumbent Teratai assemblyperson Jenice Lee to withdraw as independent candidates within 24 hours or face expulsion from the party.