Plot to topple gov't a fairy tale, says Kit Siang

DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang has described police warnings of a plot to topple the government on New Year's Eve as a "fairy tale".

He said in a statement today that the government and police were doing a disservice to the nation by fuelling this conspiracy and making Malaysia appear like a “basket case country” on the verge of political and economic collapse.

Authorities have linked a planned anti-price hike rally on New Year's Eve at Dataran Merdeka to an alleged plot to overthrow the government.

Lim blamed inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar for fuelling the conspiracy when he warned participants of the alleged protest to topple the government can be charged with carrying out activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy that carries up to 15-year jail sentence.

"...If there are Malaysians who want to demonstrate their grievances and opposition to the string of price hikes, whether sugar, petrol, power or toll, the government must accept such human rights of freedom of expression without tarring them with the brush of being anti-national elements or traitors," he said.

Lim queried whether the conspiracy was cooked up in a bid to distract controversies away from the government.

"Is it because the Najib administration has many skeletons like thesecret funding of Perkasa that ministers and police chiefs are trying to distract public attention with fairy-tale stories about New Year's Eve conspiracy to 'topple the government'?" he said.

Pakatan not involved

Lim said Malaysians were not convinced of the conspiracy and neither was the opposition involved in any such "plot".

"I can confirm that no New Year's Eve programme, including the alleged 'topple government' rally plot, was ever raised or discussed at any Pakatan Rakyat leadership or DAP meetings.

"Whatever being planned for New Year's Eve has nothing to do with Pakatan Rakyat or the DAP," he said.

Mohd Azan Safar (left), who heads Turun, the student group behind the anti-price hike protest, was arrested on Dec 23 on grounds of attempting to commit activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy but police were denied a remand and he was subsequently released.

Azan has vowed to see the protest go on Tuesday night, and accused the government of cooking up the ‘topple government’ plot in the bid to divert attention from pressing bread-and-butter issues.