Deviating from his division head, DAP Youth secretary defends Jawi lawsuit
Alleging that his colleagues have forgotten their party's core values, DAP Youth secretary Eric Teh defended Tras assemblyperson Chow Yu Hui's lawsuit which challenged a mandatory directive to include Jawi script on signboards.
In a statement issued today, Teh claimed that criticism by DAP Youth chief Howard Lee towards Chow was just a personal opinion and did not reflect the official stand of DAP Youth.
"DAP Youth always...
Alleging that his colleagues have forgotten their party's core values, DAP Youth secretary Eric Teh defended Tras assemblyperson Chow Yu Hui's lawsuit which challenged a mandatory directive to include Jawi script on signboards.
In a statement issued today, Teh claimed that criticism by DAP Youth chief Howard Lee towards Chow was just a personal opinion and did not reflect the official stand of DAP Youth.
"DAP Youth always upholds the principle of social democracy to pursue a pluralistic coexistence.
"We should oppose any cultural hegemony instead of surrendering to it, and I think Howard Lee has forgotten this," said Teh.
He explained that the Pahang state government could encourage the use of Jawi writing but should not violate the people's right of choice by imposing a mandatory directive.
"The state government failed to address objections in the state assembly and insisted on implementing (the Jawi directive), so it is totally reasonable for Pahang DAP to initiate a legal challenge against (the decision)," he added.
Teh further said the legal challenge filed by Chow was a "peaceful approach" to oppose cultural hegemony and was backed by the DAP Pahang state committee.
The Pahang government's directive, which came into effect on Jan 1, 2020, requires all business premises and road signs in the state to use Jawi writing, with the condition that the size of Jawi script is at least equal to the Latin alphabet.
On Wednesday, Chow (below) filed a lawsuit at the Kuantan High Court challenging the directive, insisting that the decision to include the Jawi script should be left to the people as it would be a matter of freedom of choice.
Chow's action later received some backlash from several DAP leaders such as Bangi MP Ong Kian Ming and Johor DAP state committee member Mahdzir Ibrahim.
Ong described the legal challenge as "totally unnecessary" and mocked those who initiated the lawsuit as "wannabe heroes".
Mahdzir urged Chow to withdraw his lawsuit and to start a dialogue with the state government in a more diplomatic approach, saying, "As a political party, DAP should not be a champion on the wrong platform."
In response to this, Teh expressed his disappointment over the criticism raised by his party comrades, saying, "These are totally wrong and unforgivable behaviours."
“Some of our Malay comrades in the party failed to convey the right message according to the party's core values. They instead pressure their comrades by exploiting racial sentiments," Teh added.
Responding to Howard Lee (photo), who wrote his comment in Jawi on Twitter, Pahang DAP secretary Lee Chin Chen sarcastically welcomed him to contest in a Malay-majority seat in the next election.
"There are 92% Malay voters in the Pulau Manis state constituency, which is located under the Pekan parliamentary constituency."
"We welcome our comrade Howard Lee to contest and secure this seat for us in the next polls," Chin Chen wrote in a Facebook post with a screenshot of Howard Lee's Tweet.
For the record, Chin Chen was present at the Kuantan High Court to show his support to the legal action on July 29, 2020.
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