DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng has criticised the home minister for singling out DAP for its continued stand in opposing the 1MDB scandal and for its queries on the RM2.6 billion donation in Prime Minister Najib Razak’s private bank accounts.

Lim said the Registrar of Societies can investigate the party for as long and as many times as it wants, but he urged that this not be 'an exercise of victimisation and persecution against the DAP'.

“We hope the ROS is not singling us out for our continued stand on 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion donation into Najib’s bank accounts,” Lim told reporters after visiting the Hin Bus Depot in George Town today.

“Just as they have singled us out to not receive any allocations for projects under Budget 2016,” he added.

“They have singled out, sidelined, forgotten and acted as if Penang is not part of Malaysia. This is part of the continuous trend (against us), which is not based on justice but based on politics,” the Penang chief minister said.

Lim was responding to the statement by Deputy Prime Minister-cum-Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who said ROS has not yet completed its investigation into DAP.

Zahid said the investigation was still going on as DAP has yet to comply with the advice of RoS. This is after the DAP had conducted its party re-elections more than two years ago.

Although DAP re-elected a new central executive committee on Sept 29, 2013, the RoS till today has refused to ratify the new leadership line-up.

'We have to fight harder'

Lim said ROS continued to investigate DAP on 'baseless complaints' it received about the re-election exercise.

He added that the authorities only took action when it concerned complaints lodged by BN, but practised double standards when it came to the opposition.

No action was taken, he pointed out, against those who had made death threats against DAP leaders or stomped on their photographs.

The actions if ROS, Lim added, have affected the DAP as the party is not allowed to set up new branches or permitted to expand as it is restricted to its existing branches only.

“This is an attempt to curb our influence. They are abusing their political powers. The Home Ministry is trying to do everything it can to undermine the opposition, especially the DAP,” Lim said.

“We have to fight harder to try and overcome these obstacles. When the going gets tough, the tough just have to get going,” he added.