GEORGE TOWN: DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang says he will not withdraw from the political battle in Gelang Patah despite talk that “Gelang Patah will be my political grave”.
The DAP adviser said his decision to contest in Gelang Patah was to create a ‘political tsunami’ in Johor in order to complete the 2008 ‘political tsunami’ so that the impact could be felt throughout the country.
“Whether I survive or perish, whether Gelang patah will end ny political career as exhorted by Dr Mahathir (Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad) to the people of Johor, I do not know, but I shall not withdraw from the battle in Gelang Patah for it has become the battle of Johor and even battle of Malaysia”, he said.
Kit Siang said the political fight in Gelang Patah was a “do or die” battle for his long political career because the MCA stronghold seat had never been won by an opposition party in the previous 12 general elections.
“Four Umno bigwigs — former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman will make Gelang Patah my ‘political grave’, he told a media conference at Wisma DAP in Penang yesterday.
The Barisan Nasional is said to be fielding Ghani in Gelang Patah against Kit Siang, a two-term member of parliament for Ipoh Timur.
“It looks like the Barisan is fielding Johor Menteri Besar in Gelang Patah, MCA has surrendered its stronghold seat to Umno, a tough seat for the opposition to win,” he added.
In the last general election in 2008, Barisan’s Tan Ah Eng from the MCA retained the Gelang Patah seat by a comfortable 8,851-vote majority. defeating Parti Keadilan Rakyat’s (PKR) Dr Zaleha Mustafa.
Kit Siang has served as a member of parliament since 1969, representing several constituencies in Melaka, Selangor and Penang.
However, Kit Siang was defeated by Chia Kwang Chye, the Barisan’s contestant for the Bukit Bendera parliamentary seat in Penang in the 1999 general election, before the latter moved to Ipoh Timur in the 2004 general election. — Bernama