KUALA LUMPUR: A former DAP member has lambasted the party’s advisor Lim Kit Siang over the latter’s contradicting statement on the Registrar of Societies' (RoS) decision yesterday.
Shamsher Singh Thind claimed Lim must have been "in a state of denial" when he made the refuting statement.
He said this in relation to RoS’ announcement yesterday, whereby it had instructed DAP to hold a second re-election for its Central Executive Committee (CEC).
Lim, in his blog post yesterday, had labeled the RoS' decision as "most ridiculous." He also said the CEC would hold an emergency meeting today to decide on the next course of action.
"So why the need to comment on the RoS decision? Is he bypassing the CEC, proving once and for all that he is indeed the dictator people insist he is?," Shamsher said, questioning Lim's motive via an exclusive interview with The Third Force, published online today.
The former DAP life member said the party’s national legal bureau chairman, Gobind Singh Deo had stated that the party had yet to receive “official communication from RoS concerning the DAP CEC.”
Gobind, he said had further stated that DAP should study the letter first before deciding on the matter.
This, Shamsher said, made perfect sense unlike what Lim had said.
He questioned if Lim was trying to outperform the party’s legal advisor, or if he was simply "too emotional to think rationally."
Shamsher said Lim should have realised that there were merits to re-electing the CEC.
“For one, it would give him and his son the opportunity to gauge if they still command majority support within the party. Isn’t that what he should be striving for?
“Lim should realise that the RoS did not deregister the DAP, and neither has any court declared the party illegal. In other words, there remain avenues for the party to seek recourse to the courts in the event it finds the RoS ruling unacceptable.
“So why is he spinning the issue out of proportion? Is he planning to jeopardise these avenues by ignoring the RoS decision, or is he simply using the RoS as a platform to gain political mileage?”
Shamsher also described Lim’s newfound friendship with former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad as ironic.
“Isn’t it ironic that Lim now shares a stage with the very man who twisted the arms of judiciary in 1988, resulting in Umno being declared illegal by the Kuala Lumpur High Court?”
Shamsher, who left the DAP in December 2016, said CEC should wait for the letter from the RoS in order to decide on the next course of action.
“In my view, the party can either conduct a re-election – which I personally think is warranted – or go ahead and file an application for a judicial review.
“This back and forth between the DAP and the RoS has gone on too long. If indeed Lim and his son have nothing to hide and are as strong as they portray themselves to be, what’s the fuss? Why not conduct a re-election and get it over with?”