Media statement by Lim Guan Eng in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday, 28^th January 2012: 

Urge BN and UMNO leaders to throw your lies and hate at me but please leave my school-going children alone! 

My family and I are upset at the statement made by Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in Sibu yesterday, dragging my daughter into his latest spin that the National Service (NS) training programme is now widely accepted and trusted by parents for the positive effect it has on their children. Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid claimed that both my father and me had seen how my daughter had changed for the better after attending the programme in Balik Pulau NS camp in Penang.

This is untrue. My daughter is a good kid and is the same before and after joining the NS Camp. Both my father and I had never told the Defence Minister as claimed by him and neither had we thanked him for it.

My daughter was selected to join the NS Camp for the 2008-9 session and she had duly complied. We have never talked about my daughter's experiences, good or bad in NS, because she is still under 21 and a student who is not involved in politics.

My family and I love our daughter and want to protect her privacy. We have shielded her from the glare of publicity so that she can grow up and enjoy life with her friends as a normal kid. We hope that Datuk Seri Ahmad can respect my daughter's privacy and not drag her into his political games to justify the NS programme.

If children of politicians venture into public life involving public interest, then they are subject to public scrutiny. However for BN leaders to try to use my children as political capital to boost BN when they are still studying and not involved in public life is wrong and regrettable.

This is not the first time that my children have been unfairly targeted by BN and UMNO leaders. Last year, my 15 year old son was defamed by UMNO leaders and UMNO Online for sexually molesting his classmate and that I have to pay RM200,000 to cover-up the scandal and transfer my son to another school. A picture of the alleged girl victim of my son was even put up by the UMNO blogs.

This cruel and barbaric lie by UMNO against my minor son was quickly exposed when the picture of the girl victim was discovered to be a fake and belonged to a Hong Kong chess grandmaster who had never met me or my son. So far no UMNO leaders had apologised to my son and me for this vicious lie that had caused my son to miss school for 2 days.

I urge UMNO and BN leaders to throw your lies at me if you must but please leave my children alone. They are still studying and are not in politics. By continuing to drag my children with lies or misrepresentation, is an act of desperation that shows their lack of moral values and absence of ethical judgment. Have BN and UMNO leaders run of ideas and ideals that their only political capital is to preach lies and hate not only against PR leaders but also at our children?

*Lim Guan Eng, DAP Secretary General & MP for Bagan