Media statement by Lim Guan Eng in Komtar, George Town on Thursday, 6^th October 2011: 

Rais Yatim should stop his dangerous games of portraying himself as a Bahasa Malaysia language hero by denying that I had also spoken in Bahasa Malaysia 

The series of malicious lies against me continue with harsh and personal attacks by Information, Communications and Culture Minister Rais Yatim that at an official function that Rais attended in Penang had sidelined the use of Bahasa Malaysia. Rais Yatim Has No Sense Of Right And Wrong When A State Government Is Held Responsible For A Function Organised By A Private Body And Refuses To Admit The Penang Chief Minister Also Spoke In Bahasa Malaysia.

Rais had first lied that only he spoke some Bahasa Malaysia at the Han Chiang College dinner on 29 September 2011, when he represented Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak who could not attend as promised.Rais claims that he was the only person speaking Bahasa Malaysia that night is false as I had also spoken in Bahasa Malaysia, English and Mandarin. Rais also spoke some Chinese at the event. Why is Rais trying to portray himself as a Malay language champion by denying that I had also spoken in Bahasa Malaysia?

Rais is wrong to treat the Han Chiang event as a Penang government event when it was organised by the private college. Clearly those who wish to explain away or cover up their lies would have to make another lie. Instead of admitting that he had been mistaken that the Han Chiang event was not a state government event, Rais had continued to attack the Penang state government by stating that I should have advised my konco-konco (followers) at the Han Chiang College to respect the national language.

The use of the words konco-konco(followers) is unwarranted because those managing Han Chiang are involved in education and not in political partisanship. Rais not just rude and disrespectful to organizers but has also breached protocol by asking the state government to interfere in a function meant for the Prime Minister. I wish to stress that the state government has no role whatsoever in the organisation of the 29thSeptember function at Han Chiang College.

Further how can the present state government be involved with the establishment of the Han Chiang College as alleged by Rais when the college was set up well before the PR government took office in 2008? If Rais is unhappy with Han Chiang, he should have boldly protested to Han Chiang that night itself. Instead he took the "brave" route of criticising Han Chiang from the distant safety of Negeri Sembilan.

Clearly, a mountain of lies by Rais would not be sufficient to hide the truth that he has unfairly maligned the Penang state government in bad faith over a private function organised by Han Chiang College. Further Rais should stop behaving exactly like Utusan Malaysia, which refuses to admit its lies and will continue those lies just to play up Malay sentiments.

Will Rais Yatim deny that I had also spoken Bahasa Malaysia at that event? That is why Rais Yatim should stop his dangerous games of play-acting as the Bahasa Malaysia language hero and stop blaming the state government for a private event organised by a private college for the Prime Minister.

*Lim Guan Eng, Penang Chief Minister