Poison-pen letter: Who did it?

By Teoh El Sen

PETALING JAYA: A DAP leader aligned to the Justice Reform Group (JRG) believes the other camp, the Unity Team, was behind the poison-pen letters bad-mouthing JRG leader Teng Chang Khim in the run-up to the Selangor party polls on Sunday.

He dismissed suggestions that the smear campaign was the work of a third party.

"It is impossible for someone to get the addresses of all branches in the state without inside help from the state DAP headquarters," claimed the leader, who declined to be named.

He alleged that other than the staff in the headquarter and state secretary, no one else would have complete information of the state DAP branches.

An English language newspaper yesterday reported that poison-pen letters or brochures lambasting Teng were sent to some 30 branches, including coastal branches between Kapar and Sabak Bernam.

Segambut MP Lim Lip Eng was quoted as saying the brochures must be the work of a third party seeking to create chaos as he was confident that members would not resort to character assassination.

"We ourselves do not know the total number of branches in the state, so how could a third party find out? For Lim to suggest that means that we have a traitor in our midst," the leader said.

The JRG and Unity Team are headed for a showdown as they vie for control of all the 15 posts in the state committee currently headed by Ean Yong Hian Wah.

'A low blow'

The Unity Team is said to be helmed by DAP veteran and state executive councillor Teresa Kok while JRG is led by Teng, who is described as a “grassroots rebel”.

Kok, who is Kinrara state assemblywoman and Seputeh MP, is considered an establishment figure while Teng, the State Legislative Assemblyman speaker, is seen as a “rogue” among the party's top leaders.

Sources in the Teng faction claimed that the poison-pen letter was a "low blow" designed to woo fence-sitting members to Kok's camp.

"They (Kok's faction) took a Chinese paper clipping on what Teng said about the party to make it look as if he is not loyal to the party. But what he was trying to say is that members should not blindly follow the leaders,” said a source from the Teng faction.

"Our principle is to fight for Malaysia... not just for DAP," he said.

It was also reported that Teng's faction was alleged to be paying delegates RM200 to vote for its contestants. But a strong Teng supporter, Sekinchan assemblyman Ng Suee Lim, has dismissed the claim.

Dinner rivals

The Teng faction is also boosted by Tee Boon Hock, the former state organising secretary and councillor who was sacked for allegedly issuing support letters to his family members and friends to obtain contracts.

Tee, though no longer a DAP member, still has considerable influence in Selangor.

In an immediate rebuttal, a source close to the Unity Camp said that the JRG's contention that no party members knew about the addresses of the branches did not hold water.

"Besides the headquarters which has the addresses of all the branches, the DAP state organising secretary (currently Teo Nie Ching) would also have them. The former organising secretary was Tee, who is sure to have a copy," he said, adding that another member who would have the full list of the addresses is Kok.

Tomorrow, the two rivals will bedinners at Jaya 33 in Petaling Jaya and Fong Cher Yuan Restaurant in Klang respectively.

Party insiders said the simultaneous dinners could well be a barometer of sorts to gauge the level of support both camps wielded.