Keng Yaik dare not debate with DAP because he knows that he would not only lose, but DAP would be able to prove Gerakan is supporting Islamisation policy of UMNO

Speech by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjung, Lim Kit Siang, at the dialogue with Jalan Trengganu residents during the second day of his visit to Jelutong Parliamentary constituency on Thursday, 24th May 1990 at 8 p.m.

Keng Yaik dare not debate with DAP because he knows that he would not only lose, but DAP would be able to prove Gerakan is supporting Islamisation policy of UMNO

It is three weeks since my challenge to Gerakan President, Datuk Dr. Lim Keng Yaik, at the Chan’s Clansmen Association in Kuala Lumpur on May 3 to public debates on the Gerakan allegation that the DAP wants to create an Islamic State.

I have repeated the challenge at least half a dozen times, the last being yesterday after the Keng Yaik launched the Gerakan’s million-dollar million-poster campaign of lies about the DAP wanting to creating an Islamic State and depicting me wearing a songkok!

I would be the most surprised person if Keng Yaik dares to accept my challenge to a series of country-wide public debates in various languages on the Gerakan allegation that the DAP wants to create an Islamic State by co-operating with PAS.

The reason is very simple. Keng Yaik knows that in such a series of public debates with me, he would not only lose, but the DAP would be able to prove that it is the Gerakan which is the real irresponsible party as it supports the Islamisation policy of UMNO.

The DAP would be able to prove that the Islamic State issue which the Gerakan is trying to create is a false issue, and the real issue and problem of the people is the Islamisation policy of UMNO. This is because PAS cannot achieve its Islamic State objective, whereas UMNO is now in a very advanced stage of its Islamisation policy!

In such a debate, I will be able to use the Deputy Prime Minister, Ghafar Baba, to support my arguements, for it was Ghafar who said last week that the Islamic State objective of PAS was a ‘mere dream’. Ghafar said that even if PAS win all the 96 Malay-predominant constituencies (which is impossible), it will be still 24 seats short of the two-thirds majority of 120 seats needed to change the Malaysain Constitution to establish an Islamic State.

Yesterday, the Gerakan launched its million-dollar million-poster campaign in Jelutong. Apparently, Keng Yaik is very embarrassed by the DAP’s ‘Keng Yaik – You Are A Liar’ posters, and directed the Gerakan workers to block out the DAP posters by pasting the black Gerakan poster of lies on top of the DAP posters.

This is a very ungentlemanly conduct. It shows Keng Yaik is so embarrassed by the 20,000 copies of ‘Keng Yaik – You Are A Liar’ poster that he had to print one million posters to counter the DAP and spread the lie about the DAP wanting to establish an Islamic State.

This shows that when the DAP spends $3,000 – the cost of the ‘Keng Yaik – You Are A Liar’ posters – Gerakan has to spend $1 million to print one million posters!