Penang critic claims state security assaulted him

Ong Eu Soon, a vocal critic of the Pakatan Rakyat government, claimed he was physically assaulted by several men wearing the state’s voluntary patrol unit uniforms in Farlim, Penang, last night.

Ong said the attack took place about 10.45pm while he was attending a Chinese temple dinner held in front of the Farlim market.

“Suddenly, several men wearing the voluntary patrol unit (PPS, Pasukan Patrol Sukarela) approached me and attacked me with their helmets,” Ong said in a police report he lodged at the Bandar Baru police station.

The report was received by Corporal Ravesh Nair Prabagaran at 11.05pm last night.

“I was kicked and punched, there are bruises on my body, my eyes are swollen and my spectacles were broken,” he added.

“It was the public who eventually came between us and stopped their attacks,” said Ong, 51, without specifying how many men attacked him.

Ong immediately lodged a report and urged the police to probe the matter thoroughly and act promptly on his aggressors.

PCM comes to aid

Meanwhile, Parti Cinta Malaysia vice-chairperson Huan Cheng Guan, who is assisting Ong in the matter, said the state government should disband the PPS if it could not control the team.

“How come a uniform unit beats people up? I urge police chief Abdul Rahim Hanafi and the Home Ministry to look into this matter seriously,” Huan (right) told Malaysiakini.

Ong is known for questioning the state government on environmental and development issues, including reclamation exercises, hill slope development, the state’s transportation policies and traffic woes and the feasibility study of the proposed RM3.6 billion undersea tunnel that will link the island to Butterworth.

Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng continues to defend the project, which includes three connecting highways, saying it was awarded by an open tender to Consortium Zenith BUCG Sdn Bhd.

Penang executive councillor for welfare and caring society Phee Boon Poh said, “Since a police report has been lodged, we will let the police investigate.”

DAP Paya Terubong assemblyperson Yeoh Soon Hin, who looks after the constituency where the incident took place, is expected to hold a press conference on the matter.

When contacted, Northeast district police deputy chief Supt Rahman Abdul said nobody has been arrested yet.

“We are looking for these unidentified men. The victim also did not specify how many were involved in attacking him,” Rahman said.

He said the case is being investigated under Section 147 of the Penal Code for voluntarily causing hurt.

Malaysiakini

Huan Files Election Petition against DAP over Alleged Wrongdoings

GEORGE TOWN: Parti Cinta Malaysia will file an election petition against the DAP for alleged offences committed during the Bukit Gelugor by-election.

Its vice-president Datuk Huan Cheng Guan, who lost in the four-cornered fight won by DAP’s Ramkarpal Singh, said he had evidence of wrongdoings committed by DAP on polling day.

Huan said he had already lodged a report with the Election Commission and that he would file a petition in the High Court within 21 days of results being gazetted. The court would then be required to hear and settle the petition within six months from the date of filing.

“I am not doing this because I am sore over the results. I have video clips and proof to show that the DAP broke all rules and regulations in this by-election,” he said at a press conference at the party’s premises in Air Itam, Monday.

“They claim their voluntary patrol unit members were not canvassing for votes on polling day, but I have video clips as proof,” he added.

Huan went on to claim that he had photographic evidence of a poster of Ramkarpal having been put up in front of a school, some 10m away from a polling station in defiance of the rule that no campaign material be placed within a 50m radius.

The PCM vice-president further questioned the state government for mobilising all its elected representatives, including state executive councillor Phee Boon Poh, to be stationed outside polling stations.

“Didn’t they have better things to do? These are the elected representatives of the people,” he said.

Huan secured 3,583 votes in the by-election won by Ramkarpal, who polled 41,242 and won by a whopping majority of 37,659 votes.

Two independent candidates, Mohamed Nabi Bux Mohd Nabi Abd Sathar and Abu Backer Sidek Mohd Zan, obtained 799 and 225 votes respectively.

Huan, Mohamed Nabi Bux and Abu Backer Sidek lost their RM10,000 deposit after failing to secure one-eighth or 12.5% of the total votes.

The Star

PCM files petition on Bukit Gelugor By-Election

GEORGE TOWN, May 27 ― Parti Cinta Malaysia Vice President Datuk Huan Cheng Guan will file an election petition alleging DAP had broken election regulations during the Bukit Gelugor polling day.

Huan, who only garnered 3,583 votes in the by-election won overwhelmingly by DAP, said he will file the petition after the election results are gazetted.

“I am not doing this because I lost but because DAP had flouted the election regulations,” he told a press conference at Air Itam.

He alleged DAP had campaigned within the polling stations on Sunday, brandishing pictures as proof.

“I have a lot of pictures and video of DAP leaders campaigning inside the polling stations.”

“They even openly set up a campaigning booth complete with DAP posters and Ramkarpal Singh Deo's posters not more than 10m from a polling station,” he alleged while holding up photos of the booth.



According to the Elections Offenses Act, all candidates amd parties are not allowed to set up booths closer than 50m from polling stations on polling day.

Huan was in a four cornered fight with DAP's Ramkarpal Singh Deo and two independent candidates Mohd Nabi Bux Mohd Sathar and Abu Backer Sidek Mohammad Zan.

DAP retained the parliamentary seat with a 37,659 vote majority.

“I am not doing this because I'm dissatisfied that I lost but DAP broke the regulations so the by-election was not conducted fairly,” Huan said.

The former Gerakan leader said he was satisfied with his results in the by-election.

“I got almost double the votes as compared to 1,801 votes I got when I contested for Batu Kawan parliamentary seat in last year's general election,” he said.

Huan was formerly the Batu Kawan MP and a Gerakan member.

Huan and the other two independent candidates lost their RM15,000 deposit each in the by-election.

All candidates are required to pay a deposit of RM15,000 to the Election Commission to contest for a parliamentary seat in an election.

They can only get back their deposit if they managed to garner one eighth or 12 per cent of the total votes cast.

The Bukit Gelugor seat was vacated after the late MP Karpal Singh was killed in a car crash last month.

- The Malay Mail -

PCM's Huan sees silver lining in defeat

BUKIT GELUGOR Despite losing his deposit, PCM vice-president Huan Cheng Guan believes his performance in the Bukit Gelugor by-election is good enough claiming he has managed reduce DAP's winning majority.

Although he lost his deposit, Huan is also happy to have received 3,583 votes as it is close to double that which he garnered in Batu Kawan, where he contested in the 13th general election.

"I hope my supporters will not be upset because this is merely an ordinary battle, it is not a war. Although I lost, but I was able to bring down DAP's majority.

"During nomination, (Ramkarpal Singh, left) said (he) wanted to achieve a bigger majority compared to his father, the late Karpal Singh who garnered more than 41,000 majority votes.

“But since he is only able to secure a majority of 37,000-plus, please don't spin or give excuses like low turnout,” he said at a press conference.

Ramkarpal won with a majority of 37,659 votes, having obtained a whopping 89 percent of votes cast.

His late father, Karpal, won with a majority of 41, 778 votes (79 percent of votes cast).

Huan added that while he was 2,000 votes shy of his target of retaining his deposit, he is still happy as PCM is a tiny party compared to heavyweight Pakatan Rakyat parties.

"Whereas, they using all machinery to run me down during the campaign, is not easy to face big guns like (DAP supremo) Lim Kit Siang, (PKR de facto leader) Anwar Ibrahim and PAS leaders."

"Furthermore, pro-Pakatan online portals such as The Malaysian Insider and Malaysian Chronicle kept attacking me.

“A lot of young people read this kind of news portals but I don't have any ill feelings towards them,” he said.

Tomorrow never dies

He added that he is mulling lodging a report to the Election Commission (EC) over alleged polls infringements.

"I'm not a sore loser, I feel okay about losing in the election, but please contest in a healthy manner,” he said.

"In any contest, there is winner and loser. The winner needs to serve the people and tomorrow is still waiting for the loser."

He also denied claims that Umno had backed him, resulting in him winning more votes than Ramkarpal in the Sungai Gelugor polling district.

He argued that if Umno was backing him, he would not have lost his deposit as Malay voters make up 14 per cent of the constituency, or about 6,000 voters.

Meanwhile, Independent candidate Mohamed Nabi Bux Mohd Nabi Abdul Sathar said his defeat is not unexpected and will not deter him from participating in future elections.

“I accept the results. It is obvious the DAP will get the votes because it is a Chinese-majority area. I will try to contest against in the next election, maybe in (Malay-majority) Shah Alam,” he said when contacted.

Mohamed Nabi Bux garnered 799 votes or 1.9 percent of votes cast.

The other Independent candidate Abu Backer Sidek Mohamad Zan fared worse with 255 votes (0.5 percent), although he pulled out of the race the day before polling.

Abu Backer injected amusement into the by-election through his dramatic campaign antics, which included throwing himself in front of Penang chief minister Lim Guan Eng's moving car (above).

Malaysiakini

Disgruntled DAP members urged to join PCM

BUKIT GELUGOR Parti Cinta Malaysia (PCM) vice-president Huan Cheng Guan has urged disgruntled DAP members to join him in the  party.

Huan, who is contesting in the Bukit Gelugor by-election, said many DAP grassroots members had voiced their dissatisfaction over the party’s choice of a young candidate.

“I hope those who are not satisfied with DAP will support me and they are all welcome to join PCM,” he told reporters after a walkabout at Island Glades in George Town today.

He also claimed that his campaign for Bukit Gelugor was tacitly supported by many DAP members.

Meanwhile, Huan also pledged to resolve the safety dilemma expressed by some residents at Desa Baiduri flat and other flats in Bandar Baru Air Itam, that there was lack of security at the premises, such as CCTV cameras and police presence.

“I will assist them to install more CCTV in strategic areas and also assign more police for the community if I become their MP,” he said.

The Bukit Gelugor parliamentary seat fell vacant when its MP, Karpal Singh died in a road accident on April 17.

Huan is involved in a four-corner fight on May 25, with DAP candidate Ramkarpal Singh Deo and two independents Abu Backer Sidek Mohammad Zan and Mohamed Nabi Bux Mohd Nabi Abdul Sathar.

- Bernama

Dis

PKR = Parti Kelentong Rakyat, says PCM

Parti Cinta Malaysia vice-president Huan Cheng Guan has criticised PKR for labelling his party "Parti Cari Makan".

Huan, who is PCM's candidate for the May 25 Bukit Gelugor by-election, said PKR can be labelled as "Parti Kelentong Rakyat".

‘Kelentong’ is the Malay word for taking the people for a ride or bluffing them.

"I am sure PKR members will be angry too if I call them that," Huan (right) said at his operations centre in Air Itam today.

"If I call PKR ‘Parti Samseng’ or ‘Parti Gangster’, they too will be angry," he added.

"Just look at the PKR elections. There is chaos everyday, they fight everyday, throw chairs here and there... all kinds of problems, everyday."

Huan was responding to incumbent PKR deputy chief Azmin Ali (left), who said BN has appointed PCM, which is ‘Parti Cari Makan’, as its proxy in Bukit Gelugor because MCA is not contesting the seat it has traditionally fought for.

Azmin said this when launching PKR's operations centre at Jalan Bingham, Bukit Gelugor, to help DAP candidate Ramkarpal Singh Deo, 38, in the by-election for the parliamentary seat.

Legal action to be looked into

Huan is facing Ramkarpal and two other Independent candidates, Mohamed Nabi Bux Mohd Nabi Abdul Sathar and Abu Backer Sidek Mohammad Zan, in a four-cornered fight.

Huan said he will be discussing with his members to see if legal action should be taken against those who label his party as such.

On the accusation that PCM is a proxy of the BN, Huan told his detractors to show proof, saying "that is the best, as anybody can talk".

He further criticised PKR leaders for wanting to "popularise themselves", especially during this season of the PKR party elections.

"They can say what they want, but I suggest PKR first resolves its internal problems that are circulated in the social media daily," he added.

Huan denied that he was angry about the labelling of his party as Parti Cari Makan, saying today is Wesak Day and one should remain calm.

"When I saw the story, I smiled, telling myself, here's another opportunity to sue someone," he quipped, laughing.

"Even yesterday, during the nominations, I heard people calling us Parti Cari Makan. We don't care."

However, Huan (left) is clueless as to why the Pakatan Rakyat attacked a small party like PCM.

The Bukit Gelugor seat fell vacant after Karpal Singh, who won the seat thrice since 2004, died in a car crash in Perak on April 17.

DAP candidate Ramkarpal, who is Karpal's third son, is a lawyer by profession.

Malaysiakini

PCM denies being BN proxy in Bukit Gelugor by-election

GEORGE TOWN: Parti Cinta Malaysia (PCM) vice-president Datuk Huan Cheng Guan denied today that the party was a proxy for the Barisan Nasional (BN) in the Bukit Gelugor parliamentary by-election.

"I'm contesting under the PCM ticket and am not a proxy for the BN," he told reporters after the close of nomination for the by-election at the Dewan Sri Pinang here.

"We will campaign from door to door even though our party machinery is small, with only a hundred people," he said, admitting that the party faced a tough fight.

He was commenting on Penang Chief Minister and DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng's allegation earlier today that the BN had sent its proxy to contest the seat.

Huan, 53, will face Ramkarpal Singh, 38, of the DAP and independents Mohamed Nabi Bux Mohd Nabi Abdul Sathar, 63, and Abu Backer Sidek Mohamad Zan, 46, in the four-way contest. Polling is on May 25.

The seat fell vacant following the death of the MP and Ramkarpal Singh's father, Karpal Singh of the DAP, in an accident on the North-South Expressway near Gua Tempurung in Kampar, Perak, on April 17. – Bernama

Parti Cinta Malaysia’s Huan best bet for Bukit Gelugor polls, says Utusan

In an article published in its weekend edition, Mingguan Malaysia, its columnist Awang Selamat praised Huan as among some of the Chinese leaders who had consistently exposed and criticised the DAP-led state government in Penang.

"His bravery has captivated the public while some Barisan Nasional component parties continue to be lethargic. What is wrong in recognising the contributions and commitment of such an NGO leader?


"Supporting the best candidate can also be considered as 'a victory' besides sending its own message," said Awang Selamat, which is the pseudonym for the Malay language newspaper’s collective editorial team.

He said the by-election was not solely a question of winning or losing but could be used to gauge the state government and the opportunity should not be wasted.

He also said he was not shocked by MCA's decision to stay out of the by-election as the party would not be able to create an upset since the seat was a DAP stronghold.

"MCA has to be realistic and make a smart move, regardless of the interpretation," he added.

Awang Selamat also questioned whether DAP ally PAS would take disciplinary action against its member, Mohamed Nabi Bux, who had offered himself as a candidate in the by-election to help the party to implement hudud in the northern state.

"Awang does not see why Nabi should be punished as he was only fighting for hudud, which is the same aspiration as his party’s.”

He also questioned whether PAS was more interested in keeping the feelings of DAP, which had voiced its opposition towards hudud, or appreciating Nabi's struggles, which were shared by grassroots members.

The by-election was called after its incumbent Karpal Singh was killed in a car accident last month.

Karpal’s son, lawyer Ramkarpal Singh Deo, has been named the DAP candidate.

MCA is not contesting the by-election as it wants to focus on its fight to defend the Constitution in light of PAS's push for the implementation of hudud in Kelantan, its secretary-general Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan said yesterday.

Despite BN not contesting the urban seat, a host of other individuals have expressed their intentions to do so, turning the contest into a possible multi-cornered fight when nominations are made tomorrow.

Besides Ramkarpal, Huan and Nabi, others include Mohamed Yacoob Mohamed Noor or more commonly known as "Yaacob Bebas" and the newly formed Penang Front Party. – May 11, 2014.

-The Malaysian Insider-