‘DAP now under systematic attack as Najib’s woes mount’

DAP has now the target of systematic attacks by BN and Umno to divert attention from its own mounting problems, said veteran leader Lim Kit Siang.

Lim said this comes as news of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's financial scandals and the Citizen's Declaration cannot be swept under the rug.

"DAP is now the target of a systematic attack by UMNO/BN leaders, propagandists and cybertroopers - starting with Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and me," he said in a speech in Balakong yesterday.

The issue of Guan Eng’s bungalow purchase, alleged to be well below market price, has been grabbing headlines since last week.

Lim said the attackers were also insinuating that this issue likens Guan Eng to former Umno selangor menteri besar Mohamed Khir Toyo, who had been convicted of corruption over the latter’s property purchase.

"There is no basis whatsoever in such a comparison," Lim insisted.

The person who sold Khir Toyo two plots of land and a bungalow at RM3.5 million said that he did so for fear of jeopardising his housing projects in Selangor, he pointed out.

Meanwhile, Lim added, the previous owner of Guan Eng's bungalow, Phang Li Koon, has made a statutory declaration (SD) denying that she is involved with the Penang government.

Lim said accusations that the chief minister had sacrificed the housing interests of Penangites, as Taman Manggis was initially meant for low-cost housing development, were unfounded.

Low cost low blow

The chief minister had already explained the state found the one-acre Taman Manggis land to be insufficient for low-cost housing development and replaced it with the 11-acre plot on Jalan SP Chelliah, which is also a better location than Taman Manggis, he said.

"I would have thought that this should deserve appreciation and commendation instead of condemnation and calumny," lamented Lim, who is Gelang Patah MP and Guan Eng’s father.

Meanwhile he said he too was called in for questioning by the police yesterday over his remarks on the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's address at the opening of Parliament on March 7.

"I expect the next step would be to charge me under the Sedition Act and to get me disqualified as a member of parliament if I am convicted of sedition," he said.

Lim had commented on the royal address saying the Agong had merely read out a speech prepared by the government.

Police reports were subsequently lodged against Lim claiming his statement undermined the credibility of the royal institution.

The assault on DAP comes as the war between Najib and his predecessor and long-running former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad heats up with the Citizen's Declaration and the latter’s lawsuit against the PM. -Mkini