By G Vinod KUALA LUMPUR: The family of the late Teoh Beng Hock has accused MCA and Gerakan leaders of breaking their promise to support calls for a royal commission of inquiry (RCI) to investigate his death.
Teoh Lee Lan, Beng Hock’s younger sister, named Gerakan president Koh Tsu Koon, MCA deputy president Liow Tiong Lai, Alor Gajah MP Fong Chan Onn of MCA and former MCA president Ong Tee Keat as the promise breakers.
They made the vow during her brother’s funeral, she told reporters at the Kuala Lumpur-Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall, where the Malaysians for Beng Hock Movement today received a list of 33,376 signatures of people supporting the setting up of a RCI.
The signatures were collected by a group called the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Justice Team, who was represented at the event by its executive director, Lee Khai Loon.
Beng Hock was an aide of Ean Yong Hian Wah, a DAP representative in the Selangor legislative assembly. He was found dead on the morning of July 16, 2009, his body sprawled on the rooftop of a building adjacent to the Shah Alam offices of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), where he had been interrogated the night before.
Following a public outcry, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak ordered an inquest into the death.
Malaysians for Beng Hock coordinator Ng Yap Hua told reporters after receiving the Justice Team’s list that his movement hoped to collect 100,000 signatures by the end of next February. These will be attached to a petition to Najib urging him to initiate the setting up of a RCI.
Lee said the Justice Team started its signature campaign in July 2009, but decided to hold back to give the inquest proceedings a chance.
“However, after more than a year, we are not satisfied with how inquest has been conducted,” he said. “We restarted the campaign last November.”
Lee Lan said political leaders should be at the coroner’s court this Friday to see for themselves how the proceedings are conducted.
“If the inquest has been seeking the truth, I would not be here,” she said.
“Just spend a day at the inquest and you will see why we are calling for a RCI.”
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