I will not share any ceramah stage with Akmal, says Teresa

MAHKOTA BY-ELECTION | DAP vice-chairperson Teresa Kok has made it clear that she will not share the same stage with Umno Youth chief Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh, whom she plans on suing, to campaign in the Mahkota by-election in Johor.

“It is common knowledge that my lawyer has issued a letter of demand as a prelude to a potential lawsuit against Akmal. His legal counsel has been in touch with mine regarding this matter,” she told Malaysiakini.

Given the circumstances, Kok said her lawyer had advised her against sharing the stage with Akmal, as it could potentially complicate her case.

“I wish to state that l will not be sharing any ceramah stage with Akmal. Furthermore, I believe this decision is in the best interest of the unity government's election campaign,” the Seputeh MP added.

Kok (above) was commenting on a proposal to bring the two politicians together during the campaign for the Sept 28 polls.

Yesterday, Sinar Harian quoted Johor DAP vice-chairperson Teo Nie Ching as stating that she is powerless to do so.

“It is up to the election director to determine what is best, whether it should (be organised or otherwise).

“I am not certain if Kok will join (the campaign) or not,” she added.

BN’s director for the by-election is Johor Menteri Besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi whereas Deputy Works Minister Ahmad Maslan is the second in command.

On Sept 11, Kok sent a legal notice to Akmal seeking RM25 million in damages for calling her “Nyonya tua” (old Nyonya) and wanting to stick a non-halal logo on her forehead.

The Seputeh DAP Youth wing also filed a police report against Akmal.

Don’t ‘punish’ Akmal

The Umno Youth chief had trained his guns on Kok for “interfering” in Islamic matters with regard to her comments on the halal certification issue.

Their spat had triggered concerns that it could dent the Chinese community’s support for BN candidate Syed Hussien Syed Abdullah, who is seeking to retain the seat for Umno.

Previously, Teo urged voters to consider the contributions of the coalition government’s leadership as a whole when casting their ballots instead of looking at the statements of certain leaders.

She suggested that it would be unfair to punish others for the actions of one person.

The menteri besar also appealed to Chinese voters, who comprise 34 percent of the 66,318 electorates in Mahkota, not to “punish” him over issues at the federal level.

The BN candidate is in a straight fight with Perikatan Nasional’s Haizan Jaafar.

The Mahkota by-election was called following the death of the incumbent Sharifah Azizah Syed Zain, 63, on Aug 2.

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