Media statement by Lim Kit Siang in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday, 25^th May 2011: 

Muhyiddin is shaping up to be the worst Deputy Prime Minister and Umno Deputy President in history – completely no class or standards!

Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is shaping up to be the worst Deputy Prime Minister and Umno Deputy President in history.

I would not yet say that he is destined to be the nation’s worst Education Minister although he is undoubtedly leading the pack in a more competitive field.

I had thought that the “creative conspiracy” by the Defence Minister and Umno vice president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi where he allegedly “exposes DAP’s plan to name Malay candidates in general election” takes the cake for being the most silly political statement of the year.

But I was wrong, for within 48 hours, Muhyiddin dislodged Zahid in making the silliest political statement of the year!

Speaking in Pagoh yesterday, Muhyiddin demonstrated that he has out-panicked Zahid resulting in an outburst of allegations characterised by falsehoods and half-truths.

Discerning Malaysians, whether Malays, Chinese, Indians, Kadazans, Ibans or Orang Asli need only ask whey Umno leaders like Muhyiddin and Zahid are so panicky about the DAP reaching out to get the support of more Malays if their allegation that the DAP is “a chauvinist party which had never cared about the wellbeing of the Malays” is true.

If Muhyiddin and Zahid are right about the DAP being a “chauvinist party which had never cared about the wellbeing of the Malays” is true, then they should be very relaxed and just dismissed’s DAP’s latest initiative to reach out to more Malays – as it is then condemned to failure!

It is precisely because Umno leaders know that their allegations against DAP are untrue and baseless – as irresponsible and baseless as Utusan Malaysia’s seditious and treasonous “Christian Malaysia” bogey – and their inner feeling that DAP can get the support of rational and right-thinking Malays, which explains why they are so panicky.

Muhyiddin alleged that DAP “had never fielded Malay candidates in previous elections”.

This is the best proof that we have a Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Umno President who is absolutely of no class or standard- - utterly contemptuous or ignorant about the truth!

For the information of Muhyiddin, Zahid and the ignoramuses thronging the upper echelons of the Umno leadership in government and party, the DAP had fielded Malay candidates in everyone of the 10 general elections contested by DAP from 1969 to 2008.

In the first general election contested by the DAP in 1969, DAP fielded Malay candidates in one parliamentary and nine state assembly constituencies covering four states, ie. Johore, Negri Sembilan, Selangor and Perak.

In the first general election outing by DAP in 1969, two Malay candidates were elected as State Assemblymen – Ibrahim Singgeh for Tapah Road, Perak and Haji Hassan bin Haji Ahmad for Si Rusa, Negri Sembilan.

Since 1969, six Malay DAP leaders had successfully won in elections – five as State Assemblymen and one as MP, Ahmad Nor who represented Bayan Baru constituency in Penang in 1990-1995.

The other three DAP Malay Assemblymen elected on the Rocket ticket were: Daing Ibrahim Othman, Mohd Salleh Nakhoda and Fadzlan Yahya.

I need only to pose a question to expose the hypocrisy spouted by Muhyiddin and Zahid – whether they can name a current UMNO Minister or MP who had sacrificed his or her political career, disqualified as an elected representative whether in Parliament or State Assembly, and gone to jail for standing up for the dignity, rights and interests of Malays as a DAP leader had done?

DAP had right from its founding 45 years ago in 1966 committed itself as a party for all Malaysians and not just for any one race or religion. This was why the DAP always fielded a multi-racial slate of candidates in every general election – starting with Malays candidates for nine state assembly and one parliamentary seats in 1969.

DAP’s new initiative to reach out to secure more Malay support to save Malaysia from decline in quality of life, increasing economic inequality, corruption, abuses of power, environmental degradation and worsening international competitiveness is part of the DAP’s founding political struggle to unite Malaysians regardless of race, religion, geography or socio-economic status in a common patriotic mission to make all Malaysians proud of Malaysia.

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