by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjung, Lim Kit Siang, in Penang on Monday, 21st May 1990:
Another big lie by Gerakan President, Datuk Dr. Lim Keng Yaik
On 3rd May 1990, at the Chan’s Clansmen Association in Kuala Lumpur, I publicly called Gerakan President, Datuk Dr. Lim Keng Yaik, “an inveterate, compulsive and incorrigible liar” for his lies about the DAP-PAS secret meeting in Jakarta.
Although I invited Keng Yaik to sue me for slander, libel and defamation, Keng Yaik dared not do so.
Yesterday, at the Penang Gerakan General Assembly, Keng Yaik has again proved me right, for he has told another big lie, when he accused the DAP of wanting to help PAS win 25 parliamentary seats, and by implication, to build an Islamic State.
After having told a big lie on the DAP-PAS secret meeting in Jakarta, it makes no difference for Keng Yaik to tell more lies about DAP and PAS!
At the Penang Gerakan Assembly yesterday, Keng Yaik is back in the old game of trying to frighten the voters with the Islamic State scare, that the DAP is about to help PAS establish an Islamic State in Malaysia.
In fact, the best rebuttal to the scare tactics of Keng Yaik that PAS would establish an Islamic State comes from none other than the Deputy Prime Minister and the UMNO Deputy President, Ghafar Baba, who said a few days ago in Malacca that PAS’ objective of an Islamic State is only a mere dream. Ghafar said that even if PAS win ¬all the 96 Malay-predominant constituencies, PAS will still be short of 24 MPs to get the necessary two-thirds majority to amend the Malay¬sian Constitution to establish an Islamic State.
But Keng Yaik does not know this basic political reality in Malaysia, or pretends not to know so that he could try to scare the people with the Islamic State issue.
This is why Keng Yaik dare not accept my challenge to a series of public debates on the Gerakan allegations that the DAP wants to create an Islamic State by co-operating with PAS, for Keng Yaik knows that in such public debates, he would be torn to pieces.
I am sure the UMNO leaders must be very shocked that Keng Yaik says that PAS can win 25 Parliamentary seats in the next general elections, for this tantamounts to a vote of no confidence in the leadership of Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamed.
If PAS can win 25 Parliamentary seats, in the next general elections, it means that UMNO has lost political power
Last week, UMNO Youth chief, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, dismissed the prediction of Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah that the Opposi¬tion parties could win 102 seats in the general elections.
Najib said that “even in the worst scenario, UMNO will win at least 73 seats”. Clearly, Keng Yaik does not agree with Najib, and agrees with Tengku Razaleigh.
There are a total of 132 seats in Peninsular Malaysia. In the last general elections, UMNO won all the 82 Parliamentary seats it contested. However, going by Keng Yaik’s prediction that PAS can win 25 Parliamentary seats, this means that it will be at the expense of UMNO losing 24 MPs (as PAS at present has one MP). This will reduce UMNO’s Parliamentary strength to 58.
But this has not taken into account the seats that would be won by Semangat 46. If PAS can increase from the present one MP to 25 MPs, then Semangat 46 should have no problem in increasing its present strength of 12 MPs to at least 30 MPs. This again will be at the UMNO’s expense, which will slash its parliamentary strength to 40 MPs! This is the scenario predicted by Tengku Razaleigh.
Is Keng Yaik aware that when he talks about PAS able to win 25 Parliamentary seats, he is in fact talking about UMNO losing polit¬ical power altogether?
I am sure Keng Yaik would never dare to suggest that Dr. Mahathir’s popularity and UMNO’s political support had collapsed so completely, that UMNO will lose power and could only get at most 40 MPs elected – becoming a mere opposition party!
But this is what he is implying when he said that PAS could win 25 Parliamentary seats in the next general elections! No wonder Keng Yaik has got the appellation of a ‘foolish doctor’!
It is also no wonder that Keng Yaik dare not face me in a public debate, for he would definitely be torn to pieces with such shallow and puerile arguments. For his own good, 1 would suggest that he should sack Dr. Kang Chin Sang, who is giving him all the bad and stupid advice about the secret DAP-PAS meeting in Jakarta, and now the ridiculous line that PAS can win 25 Parliamentary seats in the next general elections.