PETALING JAYA: DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng has turned down an invite by PAS to attend a rally next week in solidarity with former prime minister Najib Razak.
In a statement, Lim cited two reasons, namely the “bullying” against his two party colleagues and the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) statement on the pardon application last Saturday.
AdvertisementLim said he would reject the invite by PAS as the Islamic party was holding a rally against two ministers from the DAP, Nga Kor Ming and Hannah Yeoh.
Nga, the local government and housing minister, was recently criticised over a Christmas celebration at his ministry’s office in Putrajaya as it involved Muslims.
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Yeoh, on the other hand, is once again being accused of attempting to convert Muslims to Christianity or working towards turning Malaysia into a Christian nation after her defamation suit against former inspector-general of police Musa Hassan was dismissed.
Advertisement (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});“All DAP leaders stand in solidarity and support with both Nga and Hannah over such a dangerous attempt by PAS using misleading statements to provoke religious sentiments and stir up disharmony.”
Lim also said he would not participate in the rally for Najib on grounds that the AGC has outlined the constitutional due process that must be complied with in the granting of a pardon.
Advertisement (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});And as a former finance minister, Lim said he witnessed “the great financial loss suffered by the nation from the RM52 billion 1MDB financial scandal.”
On Dec 28, the AGC released a statement, saying that all pardon applications concerning offences committed within the three federal territories must be submitted to the Federal Territories’ Pardons Board.
Lim then trained his guns on PAS, highlighting the “u-turn” the party took on the 1MDB scandal. PAS, he said, had demanded Najib be arrested and charged in 2018 and was now disregarding due process by organising a rally for the former Pekan MP.
By organising a pro-Najib rally, PAS has shown itself to be dishonest in principles and unscrupulous in tactics, Lim said.
“For this reason, PAS information chief and Pasir Mas MP Ahmad Fadhli Shaari’s invitation to me to attend the solidarity rally for Najib is a ridiculous political stunt bereft of principles,” Lim said, adding it was also hypocritical and opportunistic.
Jan 6 is the date for a scheduled hearing by the Court of Appeal on Najib’s application for leave to adduce fresh evidence in his appeal to serve the remainder of his jail term under house arrest.