'Gangster links' claim a work of fiction
Arguably the most publicly visible Selangor executive council member, Ronnie Liu, has also increasingly become a controversy magnet.
The most common accusation, made famous by Wangsa Maju MP Wee Choo Keong, was that he had ‘underworld links’ and such figures held meetings at his office.
Adding to this are numerous tales on the Internet of how Liu allegedly allowed illegal massage parlours and entertainment outlets in the state to flourish.
Arguably the most publicly visible Selangor executive council member, Ronnie Liu, has also increasingly become a controversy magnet.
The most common accusation, made famous by Wangsa Maju MP Wee Choo Keong, was that he had ‘underworld links’ and such figures held meetings at his office.
Adding to this are numerous tales on the Internet of how Liu allegedly allowed illegal massage parlours and entertainment outlets in the state to flourish.
Speaking to
Malaysiakini
last Thursday, Liu described himself as the "most misunderstood politician in Selangor.
He rubbished the accusations, claiming that they were the work of his political enemies, both within and without, with the aim of destabilising the Pakatan Rakyat government in Selangor.
He claims that Barisan Nasional leaders had resorted to such measures because they feel incapable of wresting the state in the next round of elections.
“They have no other issues. They can’t say that I’m corrupt because there is no evidence. Then they go through an anonymous blogger. They can’t say I’m lazy because I work seven days a week and don’t even take leave.
“They can’t say I’m 'sombong' (arrogant) because my door is always open and my mobile phone is always on,” he lamented, when asked why he had once called himself an ‘easy target’ for his detractors.
‘My office has 24-hour CCTV’
Liu said he was smarting from accusations that ‘underworld figures’ were holding secret meetings at his office and that there was no way such incidents could happen.
“Don’t think that you can come to my office and drop a bag (of money) to trap me. My office is equipped with CCTV cameras which runs 24 hours a day.
“Furthermore, visitors have to record their visit (to my office) in this log book along with their identity card number,” he said, adding that he has never been investigated by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
Wee (
left
), who is a PKR member, did not mentioned Liu by name in his blog posting.
Since Wee’s article, more accusations have snowballed against Liu, such as a story about him being escorted on the road by a gangster-owned Toyota Harrier SUV and that he is often seen having Bak Kut Teh meals with them.
“These are all rumours... I don’t go around asking people if there are gangsters or whether they were formerly gangsters. We are polite people. I always eat Bak Kut Teh out in the open. People can see for themselves.
“The Harrier story is fiction. It is always just me and my driver. If people want to keep up, it is not easy. We have three or four functions a day. Your Harrier can’t keep up with us, unless you have a helicopter. My driver is fast beyond description, but I shouldn’t state it too clearly [laughs],” he quipped.
Throwing mud is akin to shooting a shotgun
Liu said recent developments appears to be pointing towards a multi-faceted attack on the state government and Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim.
He does not rule out the possibility that there are those within the Pakatan coalition who are trying to overthrow Khalid, while BN leaders are trying to drive a wedge between the three Pakatan parties.
“Since they don’t have any evidence of wrongdoing, they resort to mudslinging. You can avoid rocks being hurled at you, but when you grab hold of mud and throw it, it is like a shotgun. Bits will stick to your face.
“It can be cars, cows, underworld figures, blogs claiming that I murdered someone, or that I stole RM5 or RM100 of public funds and all sorts of ridiculous things.
“The latest story was that I opened a night club and my wife is the manager. Another story is that I got my brother to oversee operations of all the gambling dens in the state.
“Ai yo (sighs). The accusations hurt. Why are they doing this? This was spread by a party senior. They could have just ask me if these things were true. If you can’t ask me, then ask (party veteran) Lim Kit Siang,” he said.
Part 1
Liu: I had no hand in beer raid
Q&A: Self-regulate booze sales please!
Part 2
