Speech by Parliament Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjung, Lim Kit Siang, at the Bentong DAP Branch Anniversary Dinner held in Bentong on Sunday, 1st August 1993 at 8p.m.
Liong Sik is orchestrating a character-assassination campaign against me
I said at the Malacca DAP anniversary dinner last night that the MCA President, Datuk Seri Dr. Ling Liong Sik, had three ulterior motives in trying to question the DAP Save-Bukit China One-Person One-Dollar Fund. The first was to blacken or make the people forget the historic memory of the greatest manifestation of ‘People Power’ in Malaysia- the DAP Save Bukit China campaign ten years ago.
His second ulterior motive was to orchestrate a character-assassination campaign against me. This was why at first he spearheaded this campaign by personally challenging me to announce within a week the DAP Save Bukit China One-Person One –Dollar Fund.
When I immediately accepted his challenge and invited him to Malacca on July 12 for a ‘mutual questioning session, he realised that he had made a great tactical mistake and misjudgement – for he could not stand up with me for a public scrutiny of our respective political records. This was why after challenging me to announce the details of the DAP Save Bukit China One-Person One-Dollar Fund, Liong Sik dared not showed up in Malacca when I instantly accepted his challenge.
However, although Liong Sik has again slipped into the background, he is still behind the MCA high-level campaign to character-assassinate me.
This was why the Penang MCA Youth conducted a charade last week, allegedly challenging me to a debate on the MCA’s Langkawi Project, but actually to stage a character-assassinate of me.
In the original MCA plan, Liong Sik was to personally conduct such a character-assassination campaign in Penang, but he ‘chickened’ out after he was stung when he made his first move to question the DAP Save Bukit China One-Person One-Dollar Fund.
As part of this MCA campaign to character-assassinate me, MCA operatives all over the country are spreading lies and falsehoods about me.
For instance, they are spreading falsehoods that I have made several millions of ringgits from an out-of-court settlement of the Esso case.
Malaysians know that Barisan Nasional Government would show no mercy to me or other DAP leaders if we made the slightest mistake, and would pounce on us, arresting and prosecuting us so that we could be sent to jail, and disqualify us as MPs.
DAP leaders do not enjoy ‘immunity’ like Barisan Nasional and MCA leaders, who could commit all sorts of abuses of power, mal-practices and even corruption without any action being taken against them.
For instance, during the abortive Ling Liong Sik – Kim Sai battle for the MCA Presidential post in 1990, Ling Liong Sik’s ownership of five million Bolton Finance shares was exposed.
In a statement on July 15, 1990, Kim Sai said that Liong Sik’s explanation to Johore MCA national delegates on July 14 about his ownership of five million Bolton Finance shares was self-contradictory and proved that Liong Sik was ‘lying and misleading the public and MCA national delegates’.
This is because Liong Sik had said that his ownership of five million and Bolton Finance shares was at the request of Tan Sri Lim Tian Leong and son to lend his name to circumvent the laws governing finance companies. If this was the case, that the five million Bolton Finance shares really belonged to Tan Sri Lim Tian Leong, how come Liong Sik could sell these shares two months later?
There is no doubt that if it was not Liong Sik, but me, who was the central figure in this dubious ownership of five million Bolton Finance shares, the Anti-Corruption Agency, the Commercial Crime Police, the Inland Revenue Department, Bank Negara among others would have stepped in to conduct investigations, and I would be spending months going in and out of the ACA, Police, Inland Revenue, Bank Negara among others!
But nothing happened to Liong Sik. The ACA, the Commercial Crime Police, the Inland Revenue Department and Bank Negara were not interested at all!
Challenge to Liong Sik to jointly declare our family assets within one month
I did not take a single cent in the Esso out-of-court settlement, and I am prepared to allow a full and public investigation to be conducted if Liong Sik dare to openly make the allegation that I had made several millions of ringgit from the case.
Is Liong Sik prepared to allow a full and public investigation into his ownership of five million Bolton Finance shares?
The main reason for my agreeing to an out-of-court settlement was because my informant, who would be the star witness in the case, was fearful of his life and safety and dare not return to Malaysia to testify.
The MCA campaign to character-assassinate me also spread other lies and falsehoods about me which I would deal with at another time.
However, I want to warn Liong Sik that as MCA President, he must take full responsibility for the MCA character-assassination campaign against me.
I challenge Liong Sik within one month from tonight to join me in publicly declaring our respective family assets to subject them to public scrutiny.