Chong (centre) with Yap (left) and Tan at the news conference after the receipt of the summons and charge sheet.
KUCHING: Bandar Kuching MP Chong Chieng Jen and Stampin MP Julian Tan have been served with summons and charge sheet for allegedly committed offences under Section 4(2)(c) of the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012.
A police officer served them the court documents at the DAP headquarters at about 10.30am today.
Both Chong and Tan allegedly committed offences during the Bersih 4 rally held here on August 29 this year.
Upon conviction of the mentioned Section, the accused will be fined up to RM10,000.
At a news conference, Chong said he saw this as political persecution by the government in light of the imminent state election.
He said anyone who was fined RM2,000 and above would be disqualified as MP and ADUN and would be prohibited from standing in elections or holding any political positions for five years after the fine.
Chong’s counsel Yap Hoi Liong said he would advise Chong to plead not guilty in court tomorrow (Dec 14).
Yap said, “I can assure you that the charge sheet may be defective and we will challenge the charge from all angles.”
Yap added that he would call in witnesses including organisers of the rally and Kuching district police chief ACP Roslan Bek Ahmad, if need be.
Chong also pointed out that this was the second charge he had faced so far. The first charge on him took place in 2013 when the state government sued him for defamation over his query of the RM11 billion unaccounted state fund that had gone into the ‘Government Consultation Towards Approved Agencies Account’.
The state government demanded RM100 million from Chong for the alleged defamation.
“But the case was struck out at the High Court. But the state government has appealed in the Court of Appeal.”