Media statement by Lim Kit Siang in Kuala Lumpur on Friday, 11^th May 2012: 

UMNO has reduced politics in Malaysia to its lowest depths as illustrated by two disgraceful events yesterday

UMNO Baru is celebrating its 66th anniversary although it is only 24 years old as it was legally registered in 1988 after the officially-engineered deregistration of the original UMNO and which was why the first and third Prime Ministers, Tunku Abdul Rahman and Tun Hussein Onn refused to be members of UMNO Baru.

Be that as it may, it is indisputable that UMNO today has reduced politics in Malaysia to its lowest depths as illustrated by two disgraceful events yesterday – the Perkasa “funeral rite” in front of Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s house in Penang and the invasion of Bersih 2.0 co-chairperson Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan’s privacy.

In the former case, a group of 30 Perkasa members showed up at about 10.20 am and in a 15-minute demonstration in front of Guan Eng’s house in Pinhorn Road, Penang, threw posters of Guan Eng at his front gate and placed a framed photo of him with a garland of flowers to signify his “death” to the Malay community.

What is most deplorable is the total failure of action by the police authorities.

The Perkasa “funeral rite” is nothing less than a “death threat” to Guan Eng.

Is it conceivable that if such a “funeral rite” or “death threat” demonstration had been staged by protestors outside the residence of the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, Cabinet Ministers or those of UMNO/Barisan Nasional Mentris Besar/Chief Ministers, the police would have been equally passive and indifferent?

What is equally shocking is not only the tacit support for such disgraceful misconduct by the other Barisan Nasional component parties, but there is even a MCA national operative who could openly endorse on the Internet such “funeral rite” or “death threat” protest outside Guan Eng’s house!

Would the MCA national operative agree if such “funeral rite” or “death threat” protests are staged by protestors outside the residence of MCA Ministers, Deputy Ministers and leaders?

In the latter case, the petty traders group Ikhlas set up a burgher stall outside Ambiga’s house at Bukit Damansara, Kuala Lumpur to protest against loss of income caused by Bersih 3.0 “sit-in” on April 28.

Both these disgraceful incidents, marking a new low in Malaysian politics, would not have happened under the premiership of the first three Prime Ministers Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Razak, Tun Hussein or even under the fourth and fifth Prime Ministers, Tun Mahathir and Tun Abdullah.

Why then are they happening under the premiership of the sixth Prime Minister of Malaysia Datuk Seri Najib Razak?

Is this what Najib meant when he said he want Malaysia to become the “best democracy in the world”?

Is Najib and the UMNO/Barisan Nasional leaders aware of the sense of outrage by decent Malaysians, regardless of race, religion, political affiliation, class, gender or age at the degeneration of Malaysian politics to such depths as illustrated by these two disgraceful episodes against Guan Eng and Ambiga yesterday?

*Lim Kit Siang, DAP Parliamentary Leader & MP for Ipoh Timor