Political stability in Perak continues to be shrouded in mystery while the state's deputy speaker Hee Yit Foon added another twist to the already twisted saga.

hee yit foong interview 010209 02 The DAP leader's 'absence' at an important state function this morning sent the rumour mills into overdrive that she is on the verge of quitting and upsetting the balance of power.

According to sources, Hee was missing from the Pakatan Rakyat state assemblypersons lineup during the special investiture in conjunction with the silver jubilee celebration of the reign of Sultan Azlan Shah as the 34th Sultan of Perak at Istana Iskandariah, Kuala Kangsar.

Text messages are also making the rounds suggesting that Hee would be quitting DAP to become an independent state rep before making her way into Barisan Nasional.

Efforts to contact her have been futile.

'I cannot verify'

Meanwhile, Perak DAP chairperson Ngeh Khoo Ham could not confirm or deny if Hee attended the event in Kuala Kangsar.

ngeh koo ham "I cannot verify (her attendance)," he conceded after repeatedly being pressed on the matter during a press conference at the state DAP headquarters in Ipoh.

"To be fair, the proper way is to check with the palace (to see) if she attended," he added.

To a question, Ngeh said he last spoke to Hee yesterday night, moments before she addressed a group of reporters at her house.

Hee told the reporters that DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng's indirect threat to remove her as a state rep post was "heart breaking".

Lim made the warning to all DAP elected reps after Hee went missing for more than 24 hours. This had sparked off rumours that she would be switching to MCA.

No stranger to controversy, Hee has been listed as a possible defector since May last year following a rift with Ngeh and his cousin and fellow exco member Nga Kor Ming.

Hee, a three-term assemblyperson, was sidelined over more junior DAP state reps in the appointment of state exco members in March last year.

Hee is seen as the final piece for a Barisan checkmate to wrest control of the state, following the defections of PKR assemblypersons Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi and Osman Jailu.

Should the trio defect, Barisan would control 30 seats to Pakatan's 29.