DAP publicity secretary Gobind Singh Deo's protest against the nomination of PAS' Abdul Hadi Awang as Opposition Leader could be due to his ignorance of how members of parliament, including those from DAP, arrived at the decision to support the submission.

DAP secretary-general Kerk Kim Hock, while conceding Gobind's concern about the PAS acting president's "more extremist image" compared with that of his predecessor, the late Fadzil Noor, however said "that is a different issue".

"We have decided to support a PAS MP as Opposition Leader by the convention that the party with the most seats in Parliament gets the right to nominate," he told malaysiakini .

"We are not supporting Hadi per se , but more the parliamentary convention when nominating an Opposition Leader," added Kerk, who is MP for Kota Melaka.

Kerk was responding to the outburst by Gobind yesterday that Abdul Hadi is "not fit" to replace Fadzil as the Opposition Leader and that he (Hadi) should be "man enough to decline the appointment".

Wrong and unacceptable

Gobind said Abdul Hadi should decline the post due to his commitment towards certain ideas which are unacceptable such as his insistence on hudud laws and the establishment of an Islamic state in the country.

Although Abdul Hadi is entitled to his stand in politics, to say that he has the confidence of the entire opposition to serve as leader after what he had publicly done is certainly wrong and unacceptable, Gobind insisted.

Last month, the Terengganu state government, led by Abdul Hadi, passed the Syariah Criminal Offences (Hudud and Qisas) Bill upon implementation of which, will see the use of Islamic criminal laws.

The party's Islamic state ambition was the main reason which led DAP to severe its links with the Barisan Alternatif, an opposition front to which both belonged, last year.

Gobind was up in arms over the matter after a local daily reported that a letter had been sent to Dewan Rakyat Speaker Mohamed Zahir Ismail nominating Abdul Hadi, who is Marang MP, for the post.

The report said the letter was signed by almost all opposition members of parliament, including those from DAP.

Principle of convention

On July 3, DAP vice-president Dr Tan Seng Giaw told the press in parliament that DAP backed the appointment of Hadi because it respected the principle of convention among the opposition in parliament.

He added that, there was no difference between Hadi and Fadzil although Hadi is seen as a more assertive leader.

A week earlier, despite private reservations, DAP issued a statement saying it supported Hadi as Opposition Leader based on the convention that the bearer of the position comes from the party with the most seats.

Acting secretary-general Chong Eng, who is also the Bukit Mertajam MP, had issued and distributed it on behalf of the 10 DAP MPs, to reporters in parliament.

But this is not the first time that DAP leaders had contradicted one another or even themselves in the media.

On one occasion, the party issued conflicting statements regarding the appointment of former deputy public prosecutor Abdul Gani Patail as attorney-general.

DAP strongman Karpal Singh had scorned the appointment, as Gani's tenure as DPP was alleged to be tainted with several controversies which had far-reaching effects on the nation.

Gani headed the prosecution team for ex-deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim's corruption and sodomy case.

On the same day however, Gobind, who is Karpal's son, issued a statement supporting Gani's appointment and asked the public to give the man a chance to prove himself in his new role.

Sing a different tune

DAP leaders are often said to "sing a different tune" depending on the occasion vis-a-vis the party's relationship with its former partners in the BA.

DAP leaders were vocal in their criticism of PAS and Keadilan during the Indera Kayangan by-election in January, and Pendang and Anak Bukit by-elections last month, going as far as to withdraw support for the parties due to the Islamic state controversy.

But during the Ketari by-election in March, where DAP contested against BN's Gerakan and eventually lost, Karpal called upon Keadilan leaders not to criticise each other as it would jeopardise the opposition's performance.

He was chastising former Keadilan deputy president Dr Chandra Muzaffar for revealing the shortcomings of the party and its leaders.

Karpal had also expressed concern that Barisan Nasional might exploit the bickering to its own benefit for the by-election in Pahang then.

Yet earlier in the month, Karpal had urged Chandra to join DAP and praised him for saying he had left Keadilan because of principle and would not be part of anything that troubled his conscience.

However, Karpal's invitation was later declined by Chandra.

Freedom of speech

But all these are personal statements, said DAP publicity chief Ronnie Liu.

Liu insisted that Gobind's latest statement on Abdul Hadi was also a personal one.

As regards the post of Opposition Leader, Liu said the DAP MPs were very clear on their decision to support Abdul Hadi and "we will not withdraw that stand".

Liu also clarified that party members are at liberty to issue statements but that does not mean that those statements reflect the party's stand.

"Those who issue statements that are not the party's stand do not get the support of the party," he added.

Liu said leaders like Karpal, Tan [Seng Giaw] and life member Dr Chen Man Hin often issued personal statements on a range of issues.

"There is no need to consult others when making personal statements [which] we encourage. It is then up to the people to agree or disagree," he added.

Kerk added that the party practises "freedom of speech" and allows room for others to speak independently.

"But only the national chairperson and secretary-general can speak on behalf of the party (or make a stand) on policy matters," he said.