May I begin this letter with my utmost sympathy to Lim Guan Eng and family for the arrest and charging today? Just the news sent a chill down my spine so I can imagine how distraught Guan Eng’s family and close circle may be feeling now.

Although my heart sank with sadness and incredulity when I read about the arrest and detention of Guan Eng yesterday for the two charges of alleged corruption, there is a small relief as this is a silver lining in the dark clouds that have descended over all things opposition.

I join in with other voices to protest the need to arrest Guan Eng when he was never a flight risk. Just asking him to appear before a court today should be sufficient, but I suppose the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) was just following orders to arrest this man.

In other countries the prosecution will not arrest and charge anyone unless there are overwhelming evidence, and even at that they will not be an unnecessary arrest. But in Malaysia, if you are not Umno playmakers and supporters, then the normal rules will not apply.

This can be seen in the way Rafizi Ramli was arrested and paraded around and RSN Rayer was arrested for making a statement in the state assembly where all over the world immunity applies and any offence will be dealt with by the privileges committee.

Other alleged sedition offences will have the inspector-general of police (IGP) tweeting for that person to be arrested and investigated. However, for what seems to be clear-cut sedition, inflammatory statements and allegedly inciting violence, the IGP took almost a week before declaring that police will investigate and pass on the file to the Attorney-General’s Office. Mmmmmmmm, wonder how that will end up.

Just like Dr Mahathir Mohamad made the biggest blunder of his life when he vilified and prosecuted Anwar Ibrahim, which galvanised Malaysians, the arrest of Guan Eng and charging him will galvanise the opposition once again. Even PAS has said Guan Eng is innocent until proven guilty.

Guan Eng’s arrest will remind everyone that a strong opposition is crucial, those who were exasperated with the recent twin by-election opposition defeats will have a new bone to chew on. If there was no common cause among the opposition, Umno and its PM have just given a fresh impetus to the opposition movement.

I can’t predict for sure but I hope Umno and its band of merry men will come to rue this big blunder.

You think people will dislike Guan Eng, DAP and the opposition more now or support it even more vehemently, realising the cruelty continuous unabated?