'So what if I'm CM, I can't protect my kids'

INTERVIEW | As the days draw near to his corruption trial, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng says he is “psyching” himself up for the worst case scenario - jail time.

This would help him prepare his children to accept his fate, which he insists, is a “political conspiracy to character assassinate” him.

Lim lamented being unable to protect his four children - Rachel Lim Shay Wan, Clint Lim Whay Chau, Marcus Lim Whay Khai, who are in their 20s, and Ethan Lim Whay Zen, 10, from being hurt, despite being their father.

“So what if I am CM, I can’t protect my children,” he told Malaysiakini, in an interview in Komtar.

Being in jail is "part of my struggle", says the two-term CM. 

Being imprisoned is not something new to Lim, who first spent a year behind bars in 1989 under the Internal Security Act during Ops Lalang, and again in 1994, for 18 months, under the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984, for allegedly spreading false information regarding a rape incident involving a BN politician from Malacca. 

On his pending trial, Lim says he would provide evidence in court to clear his name, so that "I can stop BN's attempt to smear my name".

The trial, which involves 13,000 documents and 60 witnesses, has been postponed until Lim’s appeal to challenge Section 62 of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 is settled.

Youngest son affected the most

With regards to his possible jail time, Lim is most worried about his family, especially his youngest son.

"We try not to think about it but it affects the kids in their studies, in their everyday lives. 

"So sometimes we do not know how to talk about it. On one hand, they do not want to give the impression that they do not care by not talking about it. 

"But on the other hand, when they talk to me about it, they do not know how to express their support, and if they talk to me, they only make me feel sad, upset or worked up," said Lim. 

He admits to feeling heartbroken thinking of his youngest son, whom he says refuses to think of the worst of his dad. 

According to Lim, the boy gets "very angry" when he reads the "lies" he reads on the newspapers about his father, and only reads the back pages, as he follows football. 

"He hates false and fake news. Even young kids can see through the lies, even his friends feel the same way.

"He keeps asking me 'how can they say these things? I live here, I know it's not like that'," said Lim. 

The DAP secretary-general takes these challenges as the "unfortunate price" he has to pay for being in the opposition, especially the DAP. 

Lim had told his children that whether one is in the opposition or the government, he or she would face the same public scrutiny and persecution. 

According to him, the children are not only uninterested, but "disgusted" with politics, after seeing what their father and grandfather Lim Kit Siang have gone through. 

Kit Siang had also been jailed under the ISA during the Ops Lalang sweep. 

Lim also lamented the times his political opponents had trained their guns on his children, citing the incident when his son was falsely accused of molesting a fellow student. 

'Live your own lives'

Lim has advice for his children, should he be incarcerated - “Live your own lives”.

“Don’t let whatever happens to your dad and mom affect you. I always say live your life honestly.

“Never stop learning; never give up on your dreams, continue to share your joys and sorrows, this way, you can get much more out of life, and you will be happier,” he added.

There were times Lim feels he has failed his children, by not providing them with some sense of security. 

He cites the allegations against his son, who was only 15 when the issue surfaced. 

“Someone said, this case turned out well, your stock just went higher but I was so angry to hear that," he said, adding that he did not want his political image rising at the expense of his children's happiness. 

“I am willing to give up everything for my kids.”

Despite all these, Lim said, his children had never told him to give up. 

"There were times I have been asked, 'Why take all this nonsense?'.

"I just tell them, if we go through this, if we can offer something back, we are doing something good in life."- Mkini