Millions of copies of unlawful Barisan Nasional 2008 General Election Manifesto should be withdrawn immediately as having run afoul of the election law and the election of all BN candidates, including PM, DPM, Cabinet Ministers, Chief Ministers and Menteri-Menteri Besar could be declared null and void 

The millions of copies of the unlawful Barisan Nasional 2008 General Election Manifesto on “Security, Peace, Prosperity” in various languages should be withdrawn immediately as having run afoul of the election law, and the election of all Barisan Nasional parliamentary and state assembly candidates, including the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, Cabinet Ministers, Chief Ministers and Menteri-Menteri Besar in the 12th general election on 8th March 2008 could be declared null and void.

This is because the Barisan Nasional 2008 General Election Manifesto has not complied with the law requiring all printed material to carry the names of the printer and publisher.

The glossy, glitzy and very expensive Barisan Nasional 2008 General Election Manifesto in all languages only carried the publisher – “Published by Barisan Nasional headquarters, Level 8 Menara Dato Onn, Putra World Trade Centre, Jalan Tun Ismail 50480, Kuala Lumpur” but no printer is given in the manifesto!

If Opposition parties are guilty of such an infraction of the law, Opposition candidates would have been held to strict accountability.

Will the Barisan Nasional be held to strict accountability for their serious breach of the election law, and all their parliamentary and state assembly candidates disqualified unless the millions of copies of the Barisan Nasional 2008 General Election Manifesto are immediately withdrawn and replaced by a new printing which carries the identity of the printer as required by law?

This is again another test as to whether there is one law for the ordinary public but another law for the “powers-that-be” – making a total mockery of one of the five Rukunegara principles on “Upholding The Rule of Law” which is the important reason why Malaysia is rapidly losing our international competitiveness to other countries and falling behind one nation after another!

* Lim Kit Siang, DAP Parliamentary Candidate & DAP Central Policy and Strategic Planning Commission Chairman