Tony Pua to sue Zahid over arrest claim
Hemananthani Sivanandam
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
KUALA LUMPUR (March 22, 2011): DAP Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua will file a suit against Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi for accusing him of having been previously arrested and charged in Singapore.
Pua alleged that last Friday, Ahmad Zahid said Pua was unable to become a member of Parliament in Singapore due to the arrest.
"(He also) claimed that I was released due to my 'good relations' with certain authorities in Singapore.
"(He) insinuated that the deal was for me to become a Singapore 'agent' and infiltrate Malaysia," said Pua in a press conference in Parliament today.
Pua had immediately called for a retraction and apology within 24 hours of the allegations by Ahmad Zahid
"However, over the past 72 hours, I’ve heard only a pin-drop silence from the minister," said Pua.
He said he will file a suit against Ahmad Zahid next week through his lawyer and fellow colleague DAP Gobind Singh Deo for defamation and spreading malicious falsehood.
Asked on the damages sought, Gobind who was also present in the press conference said the amount was not the issue as it was a "matter of principle".
Pua lambasted Ahmad Zahid as "unfit" to be a minister because of the ministry's military intelligence failure "to filter fact from fiction".
"Instead of answering to the rakyat on questions posed to him, the most senior ranking Umno vice-president attempted to tarnish my reputation and insinuated repeatedly that I’m not loyal to this country and that I’m acting in the interest of another country.
"He even argued that if I should join the Territorial Reserve Army," said Pua.
