Second Finance Minister Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh yesterday took members of the opposition to task for their blatant accusations, allegations, outrageous statements and wild claims.

He called them cheap publicity.

He feared that if the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) continued to allow this kind of politics, the government and its backbenchers would be subject to public ridicule and disrespect.

Citing an example, he said even before the sitting started last Monday, DAP supporters held a picket at the car park in support of the suspended member and Kota Sentosa rep, Chong Chieng Jen and this was widely reported in the newspapers.

He said the picket seemed to drive a message to the people that the government was afraid of Chong’s presence in the chambers and it was wrong for the august house to suspend the assemblyman.

“It was a clear piece of evidence of a dubious mind waiting for DUN session to get underway to use such powerful and slanderous slogan to inflict maximum damage on BN,” he said in his winding-up speech yesterday.

Wong said this was “a dirty tactic to seek cheap publicity” and it was obvious that DAP used Chong’s suspension as a smear campaign against the government. “This is another mud slinging tactic hoping that the people can be bamboozled into believing that,” he said.

Wong said after Wong Ho Leng (DAP-Bukit Assek) was sent out from Monday’s sitting, Violet Yong (DAP-Pending) and Ting Tze Fui (DAP-Meradong) presented him with a couplet in Chinese which read “When you use your power excessively, calamity will soon descend of you,” and this was done in the full view of the media.

“Another publicity stunt indeed. A very subtle move again,” he said stressing that opposition members had done so skillfully to their advantage.

He conceded that initially he felt agitated and irritated by the episode but then, turned amused and decided to write a couplet for Yong and Ting which read “No calamity will descend on you if you do not say anything irresponsible and slanderous.”

He advised the opposition members not to simply talk in DUN otherwise they would find it difficult to sleep at night.

“A tit for tat, tooth for a tooth. I suppose Dato Sri Speaker this is the only way to confront directly any opposition members who make wild claims and such wild claims must be reputed vigorously and vindictively,” he said.

Wong said the august house must stop opposition members from attacking government legislation on political grounds and calculated political agenda.

“For BN to survive in the face of such subversive opposition, we must take stern stand to fight head on,” he pointed out.