(Media Conference Statement at DAP PJ Hqrs on Thursday, 14th February 2008 at 12 noon)
The New Straits Times today reported that Koh dismissed as mischievous the DAP’s claims that he, as Acting Gerakan President, was “kow-towing” to Umno over the choice of candidate for the Penang chief minister’s post.
Koh was following Abdullah’s precedent in telling a lie to end his four terms as Penang Chief Minister when he claimed that in submitting three names to Abdullah to pick as the next Penang Gerakan Chief Minister, he was just sticking to the principle, procedure and tradition of referring such matters to the prime minister, who is the BN chairman.
After the 1990 general election, the Gerakan leadership did not surrender the right to decide who should be the Penang Chief Minister to Umno or the Barisan Nasional President.
It was the Gerakan Central Working Committee which decided which one of the two contenders, Koh Tsu Koon or Dr. Goh Cheng Teik, should be selected as the Penang Gerakan Chief Minister after the electoral defeat of Dr. Lim Chong Eu.
Both Koh Tsu Koon and Goh Cheng Teik were asked to leave the Gerakan Central Working Committee meeting to allow the CWC members to deliberate and decide on the matter, at the end of which, both were called back to the CWC to be informed that the choice of the Gerakan CWC (actually that of the then Gerakan President Datuk Seri Dr. Lim Keng Yaik) fell on Koh Tsu Koon.
Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, who was then Prime Minister and Barisan Nasional President, was never asked to choose from the two candidates, Tsu Koon and Cheng Teik, as to who should be the Gerakan Penang Chief Minister.
Why has Tsu Koon set a new precedent in surrendering the decision as to who would be the next Penang Gerakan Chief Minister to the Prime Minister and Barisan Nasional President, which in effect would mean vesting in Abdullah’s powerful son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddun the decision who would be the next Gerakan Penang Chief Minister.
It would also mean a precedent would be set that it is Umno and not Gerakan which would henceforth decide who will be the Penang Gerakan Chief Minister – and Khairy’s favourite is clearly the Deputy Information Minister Chia Kwang Chye – before Penang Umno finally achieves its ambition to have an Umno Penang Chief Minister!
Tsu Koon may want to forget Khairy’s infamous excoriation of the Penang Gerakan State Government of having marginalized the Penang Malays, but Penangites and Malaysians are not going to be so forgetful as the Gerakan Acting President.
Did Tsu Koon act unilaterally in surrendering the prerogative of the Gerakan to decide who should be the next Penang Gerakan Chief Minister or did he get the full authorization of the Gerakan Central Committee to make such an unprecedented concession tantamount to renunciation of party independence and integrity?
Did former Gerakan President Datuk Seri Dr. Lim Keng Yaik give his blessing and support to the new precedent of concession set by Tsu Koon – that it is now for Umno and in particular Khairy Jamaluddin to decide who should be the next Gerakan Penang Chief Minister?