DAP renegade member of parliament Goh Kheng Huat has been found guilty of breaching a party directive which barred members from assisting Keadilan in a by-election in Kedah three months ago, said DAP disciplinary committee chairperson Chong Eng today.

The disciplinary committee decided that DAP MP for Nibong Tebal, Goh Kheng Huat, had acted contrary to the directive of the party central executive committee in the Indera Kayangan by-election, Chong said in a statement.

Chong, who is also the MP for Bukit Mertajam, added that the committee found Gohs explanation for taking part in the by-election unsatisfactory and his actions breached party discipline.

She said the committee had taken the action of issuing a warning letter dated April 3 to Goh, sternly cautioning him that the party would not tolerate similar action by him in the future.

A harsher punishment would be meted out on him should he be found guilty of such breach again, she said.

Goh, in his reply to a show-cause letter from the party last month, maintained that he had not committed any crime against the party although he did not deny his presence in Indera Kayangan and personal support to Keadilan candidate Khoo Yang Chong, who eventually lost to Barisan Nasionals Oui Ah Lan.

The support I gave to Keadilan was purely founded on the conviction that the BN and the MCA cannot be allowed to prevail, which I strongly believe is the common conviction of all opposition parties in the country, Goh was reported as saying in his letter.

Further, I believe my presence and support for Keadilan in the by-election also has the full support of the constituents of Nibong Tebal, he added.

Not serious

When contacted today, Goh said that it is now proven that his action was not a serious breach of party rules, as reflected in the punishment meted out by the committee.

When I made the personal decision to go to Indera Kayangan, I was warned that harsh actions would be taken against me. However, I waited until now to get the disciplinary committees decision on the matter (which was to issue a warning letter). It shows that the party realised what I did was not serious issue, he said.

Goh also said most of the DAP leaders criticised his action except for party chairperson Lim Kit Siang. He claimed that Lim also did not consider his action a serious matter.

Asked if he would repeat a similar action in the future, the renegade MP said it would depend on the situation.

He insisted that DAP should be united with other opposition parties and help each other against their common nemesis, the BN.

As a case in point, he said that even after the party pulled out of the Barisan Alternatif due to differences with PAS over the Islamic state issue, it could not gain more Chinese Malaysian support as reflected in the recent Ketari by-election in Pahang.

In the Ketari by-election, DAP candidate Choong Siew Onn lost to BNs Yum Ah Ha by 2,204 votes.

However, in the 1999 general elections when DAP was in BA, Choong only lost with a slim margin of 231 votes.