Those rejoicing over their success in bringing down former Penang Deputy Chief Minister 1 Mohammad Fairus Khairuddin should cut short the celebrations.

lim guan eng koh tsu koon penang land scandal issue 220409 fairus khairuddin Fairus is bent on venting his fury against those who allegedly undermined his credibility and “belittled, insulted and slandered” him with their comments.

"My legal team has collected all the evidence to file suits against all those who have spread lies and criticised me unfairly - politicians, the media, bloggers (among them). I will not let anyone off the hook," he said.

Asked if he would sue certain PKR top leaders, who were allegedly involved a ‘conspiracy’ against him, he hinted that he would spare no one.

"Just wait for the suits and watch me have a go at them. Some of them are already trembling in their underpants. They did not expect me to come back and re-appear tonight because they thought I was dead and buried," he told Malaysiakini .

Fairus had made a surprise appearance at Yayasan Aman last night for the announcement of the PKR candidate for the Penanti by-election that he had vacated on April 16.

He had resigned from the state exco and relinquished the post of DCM1 with effect from April 8 in a letter submitted to March 21 to Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, and then dropped out of sight.

At 33, Fairus was one of the youngest political leaders to have been appointed to the post of DCM1, after Pakatan Rakyat romped to victory in Penang in last year’s general election.

Standing ‘clean and tall’

Since his resignation, Fairus had been openly attacked by critics via the media and blogs, for alleged incompetent and inability to satisfy the standards set by his party.

PKR Kepala Batas Youth leader Amizudin Ahmat had accused him of taking bribes to cover up certain quarry operations in the Penang mainland. However, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has cleared Fairus of any wrongdoing.

Amizudin, who was at last night’s event, was confronted by angry PKR supporters, but quickly left the venue.

mohammad fairus penang deputy cm deny resign 160708 01 Fairus pointed out that he had not been impeached, sacked or charged and that MACC’s clearance has allowed him to stand “clean and tall”.

He claimed he was the first person in the country to have resigned voluntarily from all political posts to clear his name.

"I am fighter and my political comeback will be better, sweeter and bigger," he said, hinting that he would stand for a parliamentary seat in time.

After the Penanti polls on May 31, Fairus will leave for Australia in June to pursue a doctoral degree in political science. He is expected to be at the University Griffith in Brisbane for 12-18 months.