By Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjong, Lim Kit Siang, in Penang on Monday , January 24th, 1994:
The February 1 Penang DAP ceramah at the Penang Chinese Town Hall next Tuesday will be converted into a DAP Public Debate with Koh Tsu Koon and Tan Gim Hwa on the Hotel Metropole and Taman Midlands scandals.
The February 1 Penang DAP ceramah at the Penang Chinese Town Hall next Tuesday will be converted into a DAP Public Debate with Koh Tsu Koon and Tan Gim Hwa on the Hotel Metropole and Taman Midlands scandals.
The Penang DAP has decided to give Tsu Koon and Gim Hwa the golden opportunity to have a public debate , since the Gerakan leaders have been claiming that the DAP had been telling lies – in particular on the Hotel Metropole demolition scandal.
In this entire history of Gerakan , the Gerakan leaders had never dared to give DAP leaders an opportunity to publicly expose lies told by Gerakan leaders against the DAP – and the best example was when the Gerakan President Datuk Lim Keng Yaik himself ran away from a public meeting with the DAP in 1990.
Now, the DAP is doing something which the Gerakan had never dared to do. Since Gerakan Leaders are claiming that the DAP are telling lies about the Hotel Metropole scandal , the Taman Midlands scandal and other MPPP abuses of power and malpractices , the DAP is offering Koh tsu Koon and Tan Gim Hwa the opportunity of a public debate with the DAP at the penang Town Hall next Tuesday on February 1 to publicly expose these ‘DAP lies’.
If Tsu Koon and Gim Hwa dare not accept this ‘ golden opportunity ‘ to expose DAP lies in a public debate with the DAP on February 1 then the people of Penang can draw their own conclusions as to who is telling lies on the hOtel Metropole and Hotel Midlands scandals.
It is most shocking that Penang Gerakan leaders have openly become the apologists of the real owners who had used the RM 2 company , Dolphin Square Sdn Bhd to pay RM 9.5 million for Hotel Metropole and swiftly demolished it , by making two claims:
Firstly , that Hotel Metropole was never designated a MPPP heritage building until October 28 last year when it was plced on Category Two List ; and
Secondly , that Dolphin Square Sdn Bhd never knew that Hotel Metropole was a heritage building when it entered into a Sale and Purchases agreement in June 1993 for the property,
Let Tsu Koon and Gim Hwa come to the Public Debate with the DAP on February 1 and justify to the people of penang all the claims Gerakan leaders are making for the new owners of Hotel Metropole.
Tsu koon and Gim hwa must be forewarned that they must be prepared to give full and satisfactory accounting for the Taman Metropole and Taman Midlands scandals at the Public Debate
To be fair to Tsu Koon and Gim Hwa , I must forewarn both of them that they must prepared to give full and satisfactory accounting for the Taman Metropole and Taman Midlands scandals at the Public Debate on February 1.
They Should have a very good idea of the issues and questions they must answer form the numerous statements I had issued on both scandal, they have to also to account for the Hotel Metropole Restoration scandal . as to why in a matter of nine short-days , the MPPP order to the new owners to rebuild the hundred0 year old heritage building , Hotel Metropole in its entirelt suddenly become an order to build only the façade of the building.
I f they are not prepared to fully account to the people of Penang as to the taman Metropole and taman Midlands scandals as well as other MPPP improprieties , abuses of power and malpractices , then both Tsu Koon and Gom Hwa would be well- advised not to accept the DAP Challenges to a public Debate on February 1.
The DAP Tanjong 3 committee at its next meeting tomorrow will discuss the latest developments on the Hotel Metropole and Taman Midlands scandals , and consider actions which could be taken to compel the MPPP and the Penang State Government to be more democratic , accountable and transparent on these two scandals.