The biased and irresponsible media coverage against the DAP not only continued on Polling Day itself, when all campaigning should end, but is still going on even after the general election on Monday.
In today’s New Straits Times, the report under the heading "I don’t regret taking the risk, says Kit Siang - Party trying to analyse, absorb results’ implications" said I "berated voters for having lost an opportunity of denying Barisan Nasional its two-thirds parliamentary majority".
I did not "berate" the voters of Bukit Bendera and Kebun Bunga for not electing me into Parliament and the Penang State Assembly.
This is what I said in my prepared text given to reporters:
"What I had feared most in the tenth general election has come to pass. Malaysians have not only lost a golden political opportunity to smash the Barisan Nasional political hegemony by denying its two-thirds parliamentary majority, but set the nation on a very uncertain and perilous future with the marginalisation of DAP in Parliament and Malaysian politics…
"In the past three decades, the DAP had been the outspoken, courageous and at most times lone political force for a democratic and secular Malaysia.
"The DAP’s voice has not been silenced but gravely paralysed by yesterday’s general election result.
"With UMNO losing two state governments and 27 Parliamentary seats to PAS, and with many seats won by UMNO with very small majorities, UMNO will be under great pressure to respond to the PAS challenge and to try to win back the Malay heartland by competing with PAS on the Islamic terrain with Islamisation policies.
"With the DAP marginalised in Parliament and Malaysian politics as a result of yesterday’s polls, and with MCA, Gerakan and MIC never able to exercise any check and balance on UMNO political hegemony, Malaysia is headed for a very uncertain and perilous future."
The Sun in its article under heading "Kit Siang’s fall ushers in a new era in politics" used derogatory terms against DAP and myself, for instance "DAP’s obsolete brand of politics", "inconsequential issues as the Autopont, ‘gostan’ politics, and having a cleaner Penang", allegations that my debates in Parliament was "wanting of substance" and that I had introduced "new catchwords such as ‘hegemony’ and catch-phrases such as ‘justice, freedom and good governance’" but failing to "clarify" how I had "failed" to expose the "purported wrongdoings" of "cronyism, nepotism and corruption" after my 30 years as opposition leader.
I would refer the Sun writer to my 25 publications to read about my Parliamentary expose of the Barisan Nasional wrongdoings in the last 30 years.
I was also accused of being "soured by defeat" in the general election and "blamed" voters for losing "a golden political opportunity to smash the BN political hegemony".
I was not "soured" but "saddened" by defeat and I never "blamed" the voters for not voting for me or the DAP.
Now that the general election is over, can we expect an end to such one-sided, biased and poisonous reporting and writing in the Malaysian mass media and a return of decent and civilized journalism?
(1/12/99)