Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak was not pulling the strings behind the bitter public spat between two Barisan Nasional leaders.
Bintulu MP Tiong King Sing - who shot to stardom with his RM10 million allegation last week - said the premier did not give him the clearance to go for MCA president Ong Tee Keat's jugular.
When the war of words exploded, rumours were rife that Najib's fingerprints were all over the scene.
After all, how could a mere parliamentarian get away with embarrassing Ong, who helms the second biggest component party, and was appointed by the premier as transport minister.
It was said that Najib was cross with Ong for putting the government in the spotlight by spilling the beans on the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal.
Speaking to Malaysiakini in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday, Tiong had ruled this out.
According to the Sarawak tycoon turned politician, his tiff with the MCA president was a private matter.
To illustrate his point, Tiong said: "If you (were to) find a (new) girlfriend, would you go back and get a green light from your wife?"
"Why get others involved? If you want to do it, you should be responsible for it yourself," he added.
Playing down the issue, Tiong said he was merely clarifying certain points raised by MCA leaders who came to their president's defence.
'Shameful' allegation
Quizzed on Ong's allegation that 'external forces' were raising RM100 million to topple him, Tiong, who was tickled by this, described it as shameful.
"He said I was raising RM100 million to topple him. Please. Don't project yourself as somebody so difficult... that so much money is needed to topple you. Please! Don't bring shame to our community.
"Don't be like the opposition, every day make up stories and ask for sympathy. Why do you want to do all this? Is it necessary?" he asked.
Since commissioning an audit on PKFZ, Ong claimed that his life had been threatened by certain individuals linked to the troubled meg-project while others were planning to use the issue to stage a coup.
Though no names were ever mentioned, it is widely believed that Ong was suggesting that his estranged deputy Dr Chua Soi Lek was joining forces with those accused of impropriety in the PKFZ fiasco.
Tiong is a major stakeholder in PKFZ turnkey developer Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd, which has been accused of inflating claims from RM500 million to RM1 billion.
He has rubbished the allegation, stating that Kuala Dimensi was never given a chance to defend itself before the Transport Ministry-commissioned special task force went public with the matter.
Radio station warned
Meanwhile, Tiong also slammed the MCA-owned radio station 98.8FM over its Tuesday breakfast programme where one of the hosts made disparaging remarks against him.
The remark was uttered during a segment where the three hosts commented on various newspaper articles.
"If you want to talk, don't talk about something outside the flow. Don't say that I 'dig the hole and drag people in with me'.
"Don't talk in that manner. Don't abuse your freedom. This is a warning to 98.8FM," he thundered, pounding his fist on the table.
"I didn't know that the radio station belongs to the Star (newspaper, owned by MCA)... Why did they turn and twist? They were adding sugar and vinegar (to their content). Why?" he asked.
Malaysiakini
20/08/09
Bintulu MP Tiong King Sing - who shot to stardom with his RM10 million allegation last week - said the premier did not give him the clearance to go for MCA president Ong Tee Keat's jugular.
When the war of words exploded, rumours were rife that Najib's fingerprints were all over the scene.
After all, how could a mere parliamentarian get away with embarrassing Ong, who helms the second biggest component party, and was appointed by the premier as transport minister.
It was said that Najib was cross with Ong for putting the government in the spotlight by spilling the beans on the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal.
Speaking to Malaysiakini in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday, Tiong had ruled this out.
According to the Sarawak tycoon turned politician, his tiff with the MCA president was a private matter.
To illustrate his point, Tiong said: "If you (were to) find a (new) girlfriend, would you go back and get a green light from your wife?"
"Why get others involved? If you want to do it, you should be responsible for it yourself," he added.
Playing down the issue, Tiong said he was merely clarifying certain points raised by MCA leaders who came to their president's defence.
'Shameful' allegation
Quizzed on Ong's allegation that 'external forces' were raising RM100 million to topple him, Tiong, who was tickled by this, described it as shameful.
"He said I was raising RM100 million to topple him. Please. Don't project yourself as somebody so difficult... that so much money is needed to topple you. Please! Don't bring shame to our community.
"Don't be like the opposition, every day make up stories and ask for sympathy. Why do you want to do all this? Is it necessary?" he asked.
Since commissioning an audit on PKFZ, Ong claimed that his life had been threatened by certain individuals linked to the troubled meg-project while others were planning to use the issue to stage a coup.
Though no names were ever mentioned, it is widely believed that Ong was suggesting that his estranged deputy Dr Chua Soi Lek was joining forces with those accused of impropriety in the PKFZ fiasco.
Tiong is a major stakeholder in PKFZ turnkey developer Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd, which has been accused of inflating claims from RM500 million to RM1 billion.
He has rubbished the allegation, stating that Kuala Dimensi was never given a chance to defend itself before the Transport Ministry-commissioned special task force went public with the matter.
Radio station warned
Meanwhile, Tiong also slammed the MCA-owned radio station 98.8FM over its Tuesday breakfast programme where one of the hosts made disparaging remarks against him.
The remark was uttered during a segment where the three hosts commented on various newspaper articles.
"If you want to talk, don't talk about something outside the flow. Don't say that I 'dig the hole and drag people in with me'.
"Don't talk in that manner. Don't abuse your freedom. This is a warning to 98.8FM," he thundered, pounding his fist on the table.
"I didn't know that the radio station belongs to the Star (newspaper, owned by MCA)... Why did they turn and twist? They were adding sugar and vinegar (to their content). Why?" he asked.
Malaysiakini
20/08/09
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