Press Conference Statement by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjung, Lim Kit Siang, in DAP Hqrs in Petaling Jaya on Friday, 11th May 1990 at 12 noon.
The posters ‘Keng Yaik – You Are A Liar’ will be with-drawn once Keng Yaik admits that the so-called secret DAP-PAS meeting in Jakarta is a concoction and a lie
The DAP had printed 20,000 copies of the poster, ‘Keng Yaik – You Are A Liar’, to be put in Gerakan Parliamentary and State Assembly constituencies in various parts of the country.
The poster, ‘Keng Yaik – You Are a Liar’, will be withdrawn once the Gerakan President, Datuk Dr. Lim Keng Yaik, admits that the so-called secret DAP-PAS meeting in Jakarta is a concoction and a lie.
Alternatively, Keng Yaik can go to court to apply for an injunction to restrain the DAP from putting yo the posters. I had in fact given him advance notice a week ago of the poster on him – to force him to go to court to prove the truth it is nothing but a concoction and a lie.
It is now up to Keng Yaik to decide whether he is going to institute court action against me for printing and putting up the poster or not.
Keng Yaik and other Gerakan leaders, like the Gerakan National Youth leader, Dr. Koh Tsu Koon, the Gerakan Director of Publicity Bureau, Dr. kang Chin Sang, have accused me of being a dictator, that I could criticiise others but others could not criticize me. This is nonsensical, untrue and has nothing to do with the issue at hand. With their command over the mass media, they believe they could stick any label on me, and by sheer repetition, make the people believe that what they say is true.
Keng Yaik is welcome to make any criticisms against the DAP, but not to concoct and spread lies
I do not object to any criticism that Keng Yaik may level against the DAP or me. What I object strongly is his lies about the so-called secret DAP-PAS meeting in Jakarta. The right of criticism cannot include the right to concoct downright lies, designed to character-assassinate DAP leaders.
In his press conference statement two days ago, Keng Yaik said that political differences between opposing politicians on any issue should not degenerate into name-calling, and that such politics must have a bottomline, and that bottomline is the personal respect for each other by not calling each other abusive names.
What Keng Yaik has conveniently omitted to say is that such personal respect for each other would be destroyed, and the bottomline passed, when blatant and unashamed lies are concocted.
Keng Yaik and Gerakan leaders are going round the country trying to drum up sympathy by saying that I was either being childish and being very ruthless in wanting to personalize the issue to the extent of name-calling, poster-printing and going to court.
Keng Yaik’s lies about the Jakarta secret meeting the beginning of a dirty campaign of more lies and falsehoods by the Barisan Nasional for coming general elections
The reason why I an taking a firm stand that Keng Yaik should not be allowed to get away with the lies about the so-called secret DAP-PAS meeting in Jakarta is that we expect even more lies and concoctions from Gerakan and the Barisan Nasional partied with the approach of the general elections.
The Gerakan and other Barisan Nasional parties are worried that in the next general elections, there could be a wind of change which could either remove its two-thirds majority in Parliament, or even deprive the simple majority of the Barisan Nasional.
This is why the Barisan Nasional and its component parties is getting ready to use the most dirty, unprincipled and unscrupulous tactics to win in the next general elections, and Keng Yaik;s lies about the so-called secret DAP-PAS meeting in Jakarta is the opening shot of such campaign of ‘dirty tricks’ by the Barisan Nasional for the next general elections.
This is why we are insisting that Keng Yaik should either admit that the secret DAP-PAS meeting in Jakarta is a lie and concoction, or he should sue me for calling him “an inveterate, compulsive and incorrigible liar” and prove the truth of the secret DAP-PAS meeting in Jakarta.
DAP not afraid of criticisms, and this is reason for the challenge to Keng Yaik to public debated on his allegations that DAP wants to create Islamic State by co-operating with PAS
The DAP welcome criticism from any quarter, including Keng Yaik and Gerakan – but not lies and falsehoods. This is why at the Chan’s Clansmen Association on May 3, I challenged Keng Yaik to a series of public debated on his allegation that the DAP wants to create an Islamic State by co-operating with PAS.
This, after all, is the message that the Keng Yaik and the Gerakan is trying to spread, and I am prepared to have to series of public debate with Keng Yai, to give him an opportunity to establish his allegation that the DAP wants to create an Islamic State by co-operating with PAS.
If the DAP is trying to shut up criticism, we will never challenge Keng Yaok to a series of public debated, for Keng Yaik can make all sorts of criticisms in such public debates. Of course, he stands the risks of his criticisms being exposed as baseless and groundless.
Unfortunately, Keng Yaik has not dared to respond to my challenge to a series of public debated on his allegations, although he has continued to make them in the past two weeks.
Call for a round-table meeting of all political parties to reach an accord to fight the next general elections ‘within the bounds of decency, honesty and gentlemanly conduct’
The lies about the DAP-PAS secret meeting in Jakarta is an eye-opener of the lengths certain political leaders are prepared to go just to win the next general elections. This will be blot on the nation’s record of parliamentary democracy and general elections.
DAP calls for a round-table meeting of all political parties where all political leaders can reach an accord to fight the next general elections “within the bounds of decency, honesty and gentlemanly conduct”.
Let all political leaders openly declare that they will restrain themselves and the other leaders in their Party from resorting to dirty, unprincipled and unscrupulous tactics, and make the firm declaration that they are prepared to accept the voters’ judgment in the next general elections without resort to lies, falsehoods and character-assassination.