Parti Keadilan Rakyat (Keadilan) Wanita wing today said none of its members have succumbed to the lure of money to defect to Umno.

Its chief Fuziah Salleh claimed that despite such offers being made to several of the wing's exco members, none of them had accepted it.

"Wanita Keadilan was attacked by money politics right from the start. I received complaints from my exco members of receiving monetary offers from Umno and I believe that the attacks are ongoing," she said when contacted.

However, she refused to divulge the identities of those who had received the offers and the amount involved.

"It suffices to say that the offers were higher than those given to the Youth (members). I am not at all surprise by such dirty tactics from Umno as money politics is very much embedded in its tradition," she said.

Fuziah revealed that among those who made the offer included those in the group of Keadilan leaders - now dubbed as the ' dirty dozen ' - who joined Umno early this month.

"Before they (the 12) made the official announcement, they tried to persuade Wanita leaders to join their group. But I told them (Wanita leaders) to carefully consider if the money offered was worthy enough for them to turn their backs on the party's struggle.

"Fortunately, the Wanita leaders are very committed and they assured me that they will never consider such offers," she stressed.

Strong principles

Yesterday, 58 grassroots leaders from Keadilan announced their defection to Umno, witnessed by Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

Their group was led by former Keadilan Negri Sembilan chief Ruslan Kassim who claimed that more Keadilan members were expected to leave the party soon.

Fuziah claimed that out of the 70 Keadilan members who joined Umno, only one was from her wing and she was a non-active Wanita division chief from Pahang.

"I am not sorry to lose her as she has never participated in party functions and activities for the past two years. We suffered no damage," she added.

Asked how Wanita leaders managed to resist the offers, Fuziah said Keadilan was blessed with women of great strength, character and principles.

"In times of crisis, women have proven to be stronger. Men find it hard to resist the temptation especially those who are laden with debts," she added.

RM50,000 offer

Meanwhile, Penang Wanita deputy chief Aminah Abdullah claimed that Umno had offered her RM50,000 to cross over.

"I was approached by one Umno Wanita division chief recently who told me they are willing to pay the sum if I agree to abandon Keadilan. I tried to lead them on by stating that RM50,000 was too little and was quite surprised when they said they will actually consider giving me more.

"But as I did not want to create a misunderstanding, I immediately told then that I have no desire to leave the party for money," she told malaysiakini.

While conceding that the amount offered was substantial, Aminah said she was not tempted at all as she was comfortable with her simple lifestyle.

"I am used to the hard life so the money did not appeal to me. Of course money is important but...for me, integrity is even more precious," said the housewife who helms Bukit Bendera Wanita wing.

Aminah also claimed that this was not the first time she had received such offers stating that a similar incident occurred prior to the 1999 general election.

"I had not even join Keadilan then but Umno was eager to recruit me. When I turned them down, they tried to persuade me by offering me a house, a car and some monthly allowance.

"I asked them if this (money) was what Umno's struggle is all about and told them to make the offer to the needy instead," she said.