Chong: Ban on Tony Pua a sign of Adenan’s support for Najib

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KUCHING: The banning of Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua from entering Sarawak is a clear sign of Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem’s support for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

This is the view of Bandar Kuching MP Chong Chieng Jen, who said although Adenan had openly said he would ban racists and religious bigots from entering the state, his act to ban Pua “does not reflect what he said.”

“Tony Pua has never uttered any words of racism or religious fanaticism. On what ground was Tony Pua banned from entering Sarawak? Even a rapist is entitled to know what offence he is charged with, but that is not the case for Tony Pua, a Member of Parliament, when he was escorted out of Sarawak,” he said in a media statement yesterday.

Chong, also Kota Sentosa assemblyman and state DAP chairman, pointed out Adenan was still keeping mum about the reason even 24 hours after the deportation.

“It does not take much for one to guess that Tony Pua’s ban is because of his expose of the 1MDB (1Malaysia Development Berhad) scandal which is hitting Najib very badly, and even threatens Najib’s premiership.

“Tony Pua is well-known for his effort in fighting corruption in the country and in particular, the expose of the 1MDB scandal involving Najib. He is also the key person in our DAP’s Impian Sarawak projects where he has helped raise millions of ringgit and arranged for hundreds of volunteers (including specialists and teachers) to provide basic water supply, medical treatment and English learning opportunities to the Sarawak rural folks.”

Chong said if one were to insist on finding fault with Pua, they could only come to the finding that his entry to Sarawak would help break Barisan Nasional’s (BN) political hegemony in the state.

“It is not good for Sarawak BN, but is good for the state as a whole. Adenan’s action in banning Tony Pua from entering Sarawak is a loud and clear endorsement for Najib (especially on the 1MDB scandal), because Tony Pua was also banned by Najib’s administration from leaving Malaysia for the same reason.

“Such action also echoes Najib’s acts in penalising those who investigate the 1MDB scandal by transferring them from their respective positions to the Prime Minister’s Department or by terminating their services without proper notice.”

He acknowledged that Adenan had said many right things and carried out some good policies since he was sworn in as the
chief minister last year.

“However, his 100 per cent support for Najib is now putting many people off. Most right-thinking Sarawakians want a truly clean and liberal chief minister, not a chief minister who only appears to be clean but is actually associating himself with and supporting another corrupt leader.”

Pua was deported from Miri Airport via a flight to Kuala Lumpur at 4.20pm on Wednesday, after being picked up by five immigration officers while having lunch with Piasau assemblyman Alan Ling at a restaurant in Miri.