Oh spending time with the grieving parents of Teoh Beng Hock. - Picture by Choo Choy May
ALOR GAJAH, July 19 – The prime minister’s personal emissary to the Teoh family home here – political secretary Oh Ei Sun – was taken aback when Teoh Beng Hock’s mother confronted him, demanding that he do something about her son’s tragic death.
Oh, who had come to convey the PM’s condolences, was visibly shaken but he quickly recovered and spoke to the family for a few minutes.
Later, at a brief press conference, he said: “I received a phone call from the prime minister last night. He told me to come here and offer his personal condolences to the family.”
While he was speaking to the media, Teoh’s younger sister came out and confronted him again, “What are you going to do about this?”
Oh told her that he would convey to the prime minister the family’s demand for a royal inquiry into Teoh’s death. He also said the Cabinet would discuss the matter this Wednesday.
Teoh’s family told Oh that they want to make it clear that they chose not to have a second autopsy because they did not want to prolong the pain, and not because they accepted the first report. Also, they want the PM to attend to this personally.
On the distraught family taking out their anger on him, Oh said he was not upset but emphatised with them as he, too, had suffered a personal loss recently.
After the press conference, there was a poignant moment when Beng Hock’s father, Teoh Leong Hwee, grasped Oh’s hand and pleaded for help to find out how and why his young son died.
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