LDP supreme council members protest against notice to appear before disciplinary committee – Teo

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KOTA KINABALU: All the office bearers and supreme council members of Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) who were purportedly removed from the supreme council and suspended from their positions in the party by the suspended president Datuk Liew Vui Keong have protested against the Notice To Appear Before The Disciplinary Committee which they received about a week ago.

In a press statement issued here yesterday, LDP secretary general Datuk Teo Chee Kang pointed out that the said notices were issued by Datuk Pang Yuk Ming, whose appointments as the deputy president and chairman of the disciplinary committee was ultra vires the party constitution, such appointments were therefore null and void. It follows that the said notices are also null and void.

Teo said that in response to Liew’s recent statement on the appointment of Pang to head the disciplinary committee which would determine the status of the supreme council members purportedly removed and/or suspended in a hearing of the inquiry today (October 2).  Teo, who is also the Minister of Special Tasks, said Pang was appointed by the impugned presidential council meeting on August 31 which should have been rightly aborted for non establishment of quorum.

“The notice of the said presidential council meeting was issued by email to seven presidential council members on August 30 but none of them attended the meeting.

“When more than two-third of the supreme council members signed a declaration of no confidence against Liew’s leadership on August 28, he became crippled ,thus could no longer exercise his power as the party president.”
In any event, Teo said it was a mockery of the inquiry process because even before the hearing, new appointments had already been made to replace leaders who were called to answer “charges” against them in the inquiry.

“I reiterate our stance of such notice to appear the committee has no legal standing at all.

“ However, for the sake of argument, what if the Disciplinary Committee finds that we are ‘not guilty as charged’? Are they going to remove all the newly appointed replacements and reinstate all of us? It is obvious that the Disciplinary Committee is being used as a ‘Kangaroo Court’ just to rubber stamp decisions which have been pre-determined,” Teo said.
Teo continued to say that it was also against the rule of natural justice for Pang to chair the hearing.

“Because of the fact that he has assumed the position of the deputy president (which is denied), how can he conduct the inquiry against Datuk Chin Su Phin?” With regard to the allegation of forgery in the written requisition for an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) signed by the delegates, Teo said Liew’s faction would never recognise the said requisition simply because they were fearful of facing the delegates.

“They know that Liew has lost the support, therefore they will resort to all sorts of excuses to avoid the EGM.

“Whatever issue they raise, it cannot negate the fact that more than one-third of the delegates have signed the requisition, therefore an EGM must be convened pursuant to clause 17(a)(iii) of the Party Constitution. The refusal to recognise the EGM is a flagrant disregard for the will of the party grassroots.”

Teo said the requirement of 30 days’ notice to call for an EGM is a non-issue because the party constitution has clear provision for such short notice to be ratified in the EGM itself. At the end of the day, it is the relevant authority that will determine the legality of the EGM, not Liew’s fraction.

“While Liew claims that there is no order from a competent authority to say that our purported removals and suspensions are invalid in law, let me remind that we have extracted the latest record from the Registrar of Societies’ Office (ROS) which still reflects the status quo of the leadership line-up prior to the purported removals and suspensions, notwithstanding the fact that his faction had earlier written to the ROS seeking to update the records with their new appointees.

“Please show us an order from a competent authority to say that our removals and suspensions are valid, failing which he should stop misleading the Party members and the public.”

Teo pointed out that the new “supreme council” line-up which Liew announced recently spoke volumes of the fact that the latter had lost the support.

“It is observed that nine supreme council members including two vice presidents are from Kapayan Division, the line-up also includes his brother and two nephews, his law firm’s staff, and at least three who work either in West Malaysia or overseas.

“It must also be noted that 17 Divisions are not represented in the impugned supreme council.” According to the LDP party constitution, 15 ordinary members of the supreme council are to be elected whereas another 15 are to be appointed by the President after consultation with the supreme council, he said.

“Apparently, the quota of 15 elected members were also filled up by new supreme council members by way of appointments.”

“While I dispute the legality of all such appointments, I must point out that even if all elected members were legally removed, their positions must be left vacant until the next party elections.”