Syed Hamid now verifying Monday's supposed rally info??!!

Tuesday July 15, 2008 MYT 1:41:45 PM

DAP denies attending rally meeting

KUALA LUMPUR: DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang, secretary-general Lim Guan Eng and vice-chairman Dr Tan Seng Giaw denied attending a meeting with Pakatan Rakyat leaders on July 9 on the alleged Monday rally.

DAP has called for a retraction from Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar who said Monday that the meeting was attended by various leaders, including Kit Siang, Guan Eng, Dr Tan and PAS treasurer Dr Mohd Hatta Ramli.

DAP claims there was no such meeting among the Pakatan top leadership.

Kit Siang added that there should be a public inquiry into the massive road blocks on Monday.

He also called for Syed Hamid to resign if he failed to provide an explanation for the massive jams on Monday.

In an immediate response, Syed Hamid said the Home Ministry will verify the information he received via SMS on the planned rally outside Parliament. He added that he will not apologise to the DAP unless they speak to him "nicely" about it.

In Parliament, Syed Hamid insisted that the authorities had valid information that Guan Eng had attended a meeting with Pakatan Rakyat leaders on July 9 to discuss the alleged demonstration on Monday.

“I will retract what had been said of Yang Berhormat if the information is found to be untrue. The details of the information are not with me, but I can tell you more in other forums,” he added.

Guan Eng earlier denied that he had attended the meeting, and claimed that he was with the Penang Yang di-Pertua Negri Tun Abdul Rahman Abbas on that day.

“I was in Penang and there was no meeting at the PKR headquarters (on that day),” he added.

Several minutes of argument then ensued between the Pakatan MPs and Barisan backbenchers.

N. Gobalakrishnan (PKR-Padang Serai) told Syed Hamid that the massive traffic gridlock had occurred because of “your false information,” while Syed Hamid replied that “Yang Berhormat is the one who is causing difficulty to the people.”

Earlier Syed Hamid told Raime Unggi (BN-Tenom) that the ministry encouraged a liberal and responsible mass media which adhered to the Federal Constitution, democratic principles and Malaysia’s multi-racial society.

He added a “national media policy” was being formulated to ensure the country’s mass media fulfilled the country’s aspirations to create mass media that was responsible, transparent and had credibility.

The policy encompassed the print and electronic media.