Speech by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Petaling, Lim Kit Siang, at the Dato Karamat DAP Branch 10th Anniversary Dinner held at Jalan Batu Lanchang, Penang, on Saturday, 18th July 1981 at 8 pm
DAP welcome Musa Hitam’s assurance that the Barisan Nasional would honour the voters’ verdict should they want to have an Opposition Government
I welcome the assurance given by the Deputy Prime Minister-expectant, Datuk Musa Hitam in an interview yesterday that he the Barisan Nasional would honour the result of a general elections if the voters voted for an Opposition Government.
Datuk Musa Hitam said that in the past, when Trengganu and Kelantan were under the PMIP and Penang had fallen into the hands of Opposition, there had been no unwillingness and no resistance on the Federal Government’s part. to honour the result of the ballot-box.
I hope that under the new team of Dr. Mahathir and Datuk Musa Hitam, they would ensure that in general elections, clean, honest and democratic campaign are conducted where there would be no attempts by any party to frighten the voters as to what would happen should they vote for such and such opposition candidates, and that there would be a strict adherence to the election laws imposing a maximum limit on election expenses.
In the past, the election laws which provide that a Parliamentary candidate can spend at most $20,000 and a State Assembly candidates. The purpose of the election law on maximum election expenditures is to ensure that elections are not bought by the gigantic outpourings of money.
Furthermore, when a candidate spend $500,000, or $500,000 or $1 million or $2 million to get elected, then more likely than not, he would use his position as MP or State Assemblyman to recoup his election expenditure, and profit many times over. This is where political corruption begins.
Surprise that Samy Yelu and Tan Sri Ong Kee Hui claim they have not yet received my letter on motion to condemn Haji Shuhaimi
I am surprised that the MIC President, Datuk Smy Vellu and the SUPP President, Tan Sri Ong Kee Hui, told reporters that they have not yet received my letter inviting Ministers, Deputy Ministers, Parliamentary Secretaries, MPs from MCA, Gerakan, SUPP and MIC to join DAP Mps to move a motion in Parliament to condemn Haji Suhaimi for his extremist and chauvinist speech at the recent UMNO Youth Conference.
I have checked and ascertained that all the four letters to Datuk Lee San Choon, Dr. Lim Keng Yaik, Datuk Samy Vellu and Tan Sri Ong Kee Hui, were sent by A.R.Registered and That the A.R card for all four had been returned to the DAP Headquarters, signifying that they had been delivered.
For instance, the AR Card for the letter to Datuk Samy Vellu even bear the stamp of MIC Headquarters, and I therefore cannot understand how Datuk Samy Vellu can claim he had that the letter, which was delivered to MIC Headquarters on July 10, as shown on the AR Card. The same applies to Tan Sri Ong.
Those who are afraid to take a clear-cut political stand against extremism and chauvinism as spouted by Haji Suhaimi Kamarrudin will invent all sorts of excuses, like not receiving the letters from me, or like Datuk Paul Leong’s lame excuse about not wanting to ‘waste time’ on Suhaimi.
I hope that they will all re-consider and in the interests of ensuring that in a multi-racial society like Malaysia, the sirens of extremism can have no foothold to rear their ugly head, join the mainstream of the forces of reason and moderation to make their voices heard, felt and respected!
Otherwise, they will be party to those who want to stifle the forces of reason and moderation.