Author denounces media 'spinning skills' on his comment piece

Member of Kedah DAP’s legal bureau committee Zulhazmi Shariff, who authored a comment piece titled “Apa salahnya DAP jadi TPM?” (What’s wrong with DAP becoming DPM?), has denounced the media spin on his article.

Commenting on his piece which was published by Malaysiakini yesterday in its Malay section, Zulhazmi believes that Utusan Online, as well as its print version, had published reports on the matter based on his comment piece.

“After reading the Utusan Online report, I could only smile over Utusan’s ‘spinning skills’, a fact that has been known for a long time,” Zulhazmi said in a statement today.

He reiterated that his comment piece, citing the Federal Constitution, had argued that there was nothing wrong with DAP setting its sights on the deputy prime minister's post.

Zulhazmi had responded to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's aide who challenged DAP leader Lim Kit Siang to "confess to his dream" of being appointed to the number two post.

Utusan Malaysia, Berita Harian, New Straits Times and TV3 had claimed that it was Malaysiakiniwhich endorsed or suggested DAP for the post.

On its front page, Utusan Malaysia stated: "Malaysiakini sokong Kit Siang jadi TPM (Malaysiakini supports Kit Siang to be deputy prime minister)".

Whereas, the headline for NST's article on page 10 read: "Malaysiakini: Lim eligible to be DPM".

Meanwhile, Lim, in a separate statement, pointed to the “sheer coincidence” how Utusan Malaysia, New Straits Times and Berita Harian had all reported on the comment piece but omitted that the article was written by Zulhazmi.

“This was power play at the most blatant, someone - who is actually Umno’s Goebbels - who had the power to direct the three Umno-owned ‘mainstream newspapers’ what to print, how to print, and what to omit!” said the Gelang Patah MP, citing Adolf Hitler’s propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels of Nazi Germany.

“In commanding the Umno-owned ‘mainstream media’ to exploit the Malaysiakini article, but avoid mentioning that it was written by Zulhazmi, Umno’s Goebbels was flaunting his power.

“What he did not realise was that he was also advertising his failures as Umno’s Goebbels to make his big lies accepted by the public as Gospel truths.”

Lim also decried the mainstream media’s “propaganda”, having accused him of wanting to be prime minister and deputy prime minister.

Reiterating that he never aspired to be either, Lim also confirmed that he had instructed his lawyer to go through various articles, statements and speeches which had made defamatory allegations against him.

“Like accusing me of being ‘anti-Islam’ when it is completely false and untrue, and to institute legal proceedings to stop such defamatory and pernicious practices,” he added.- Mkini