By Geryl Ogilvy
KUCHING, June 11: Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) will issue its former Batu Lintang assemblyman Voon Lee Shan with a show-cause letter to explain his dual political party membership.
State DAP organising secretary Violet Yong said the party had never sacked Voon despite his allegation, which was reported in the media, that he was sacked by DAP on the eve of nomination day for the 2011 state election.
Based on party records this year, the Pending assemblywoman said that Voon was still a member under the DAP Batu Lintang branch. The records also stated that Voon had joined DAP on Aug 1, 1999, as a life member.
There was never any official letter issued by DAP to sack him, nor did he ever tender any resignation from the party. As far as the record is concerned, Voon was still a DAP life member, she said.
“Voon is not telling the truth. From our party records, he belongs to DAP Batu Lintang branch, whereby the last annual general meeting (AGM) held by the branch in 2012 revealed that he was nominated as the chairman for that particular branch.
“If what Voon claimed is true, that he was sacked in 2011, then why did his branch hold the meeting with him nominated as chairman for DAP Batu Lintang?” she told a press conference at DAP headquarters here today.
Yong added that the nomination papers has Voon’s signature on it, and that the document was filed with the Registrar of Societies (RoS).
She was responding to Voon, the newly-minted Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) president, who said that he was no longer a member of DAP after the party dismissed him on the eve of nomination day for the 2011 state polls.
Voon claimed that his sacking happened at the party headquarters, and that the dismissal was done despite five out of seven DAP branches in the city wanting him to defend the Batu Lintang state constituency.
“It seems that to him, DAP not nominating him as a candidate for the 2011 state polls was considered as being sacked.
“Such thinking is terrible. If every DAP member has such thinking, then the party would only have 31 members in the Parliamentary seats and 82 Sarawak State Assembly seats,” she quipped.
Yong further cited Voon’s speech at the 2012 Batu Lintang branch AGM, which stated him as saying that he will leave it to the party (DAP) whether to nominate him for the Stampin Parliamentary seat for the 2013 general election (GE13).
“It seems that in 2012, he hopes to become a candidate in GE13. If he was sacked by the party, how can he made such a statement?” she asked.
Yong also advised Voon to come up with a better “recipe” when cooking his story.
“Under DAP constitution, a member cannot hold dual membership. A show-cause letter will be issued for him to explain his dual membership. If he cannot explain, his membership will be terminated.
“We have the records, I hope Voon will be truthful in his statement. I won’t be surprised that if DAP sacks him today, he would show the letter as proof to back his story,” she continued.
Yong advised Voon to own up to the truth, as this is a matter about integrity to the party.
When asked on Voon becoming the president of another political party despite his membership with DAP, she pointed out that there is nothing DAP can do about Voon’s involvement with other political parties, as is it outside party matters.
Furthermore, there is no law in the country that prohibits a party member from leaving or forming a new political party, she said. — DayakDaily
