The Teoh Beng Hock Association for Democratic Advancement expresses extreme disappointment over the collective silence of the DAP leadership regarding the investigation results of Teoh Beng Hock’s case.
In 2009, when Teoh Beng Hock’s tragic death occurred, DAP leaders and activists condemned the Barisan Nasional government for causing his death, organising memorials nationwide in his honour.
Current Transport Minister and DAP secretary general Loke Siew Fook was then the chief of the DAP’s socialist youth wing, responsible for coordinating nationwide memorial events for Teoh.
For more than a decade, the DAP has relentlessly criticised the inconclusive ruling of the coroner’s court, the inefficiency of police investigations, the claim by Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) lawyers that Teoh strangled himself, and a royal commission’s conclusion that Teoh was forced into suicide.
During election talks, public memorials and press conferences, the DAP consistently pledged that once in power at the federal level, it would deliver justice for Teoh.
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Senior DAP leaders such as Lim Kit Siang, Lim Guan Eng, Gobind Singh Deo and Teo Nie Ching had previously called for justice in Teoh’s case – yet none have spoken out now.
In the past, the DAP continually criticised the Barisan Nasional government for corruption, inefficiency and non-transparency, stressing the importance of integrity and transparency principles. Upon taking power in Penang, the DAP even introduced the slogan “Competency, Accountability, Transparency” (CAT).
We urge the DAP to break its silence and uphold the principes of accountability and transparency it has championed for years by publicly explaining its political stance on the investigation results of Teoh’s case to his family.
Cabinet ministers might cite the Westminster cabinet principle of collective responsibility, stating that cabinet members should not publicly question government policies.
However, the four DAP ministers must also understand that collective responsibility means they are equally accountable for the police department’s conclusion of “no further responsibility” and the attorney general’s ruling of “insufficient evidence for prosecution”.
As one of the largest parties in Parliament, the DAP must clarify whether they support the stance of the police and the attorney general’s office.
The Teoh Beng Hock Association for Democratic Advancement believes that DAP leaders should not hide behind the excuse of cabinet collective responsibility without taking action.
Politics is the art of possibility, and the DAP can leverage its strength as the largest party in the ruling coalition to push for criminal enforcement agencies to uncover the truth and bring justice to Teoh.
When cabinet ministers strongly oppose government policies, they can resign as a form of protest.
A former minister in the Prime Minister’s Department for legal Affairs, Zaid Ibrahim, once resigned in 2008 to protest the Abdullah Badawi administration’s use of the Internal Security Act to detain Seputeh MP Teresa Kok, blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin and Sinchew Daily journalist Tan Hoon Cheng.
If a BN minister could resign over the persecution of a DAP MP, there is no reason the current five DAP ministers should refuse to resign over the administration’s failure to uncover truth and justice for its member Teoh Beng Hock.
Therefore, we urge the five DAP cabinet ministers – Loke, Gobind, Nga, Sim Chee Keong and Hannah Yeoh – to collectively resign from their ministerial positions in protest against the investigation results of Teoh’s case. They should take full political responsibility on behalf of the DAP for failing to fulfil the party’s past promises regarding Teoh’s case. This would be the best demonstration of the DAP’s commitment to accountability.
Ng Yap Hwa is the chairperson of the Teoh Beng Hock Association for Democratic Advancement.
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