Leon Lee's personal attack on DAP chairperson Lim Kit Siang may be politically motivated or just the misunderstanding of a young man (Sail on DAP, but take a break first, Dec 9-10). Whatever it is, I feel there must be some clarification has to be made before this gets out of hand.

In the last month or so there have been a few articles published that are very critical of him, some to the point of belittling him as well as casting aspersions on his integrity. He has been accused of cronyism, nepotism, arrogance, etc.

But why on earth would anyone want to be Kit Siang's crony? What benefits or contracts or bailouts can he give you?

Kit Siang has been accused by Mahathir, Ling and other obscure politicians of bringing his son, Guan Eng (a chartered accountant) and his daughter-in-law, Betty Chew, a lawyer, into the party. The implication is that they will inherit great benefits and riches. I ask you, what benefits and what riches can one get from DAP?

The 'benefits' that Guan Eng got are a prison term, losing his right to practise as a chartered accountant, disqualification as an MP, imprisonment under the ISA, etc. I may have missed out on some 'benefits'.

Even the most politically naive of Malaysians will understand that there no personal benefits when one joins DAP. I stand to be corrected but I dare say that the only time a DAP member can 'benefit' from anything is when he sells his soul to the Barisan Nasional.

Kit Siang will not be able to give his son billions of ringgit from government projects and policies, so where is the nepotism?

He has been accused by those who have left the party, maybe some are due to misunderstandings, or other circumstances, but the majority just need a reason after having crossed over.

Being a secretary-general (Kit Siang's previous post) of a party like DAP is a thankless job, without any material benefits and no economic clout, unlike his counterparts in BN, especially in Umno where party members have plenty to gain (no need to elaborate what I mean as even the prime minister has admitted it at the Umno extraordinary general assembly recently). Money politics or corruption has been practised to a fine art, where even the most powerful man in Malaysia cannot do anything about it.

The majority of DAP members contribute their time and money without any material returns. No one can be arrogant, there is no economic clout, so the members support the party leadership out of deference because we all know that those who serve in DAP have nothing to gain materially and that the leaders have sacrificed their whole life for the betterment of all Malaysians.

Kit Siang is human, he has his faults - who doesn't. He is honest, has a high level of integrity, is objective, hardworking, compassionate, patient, sincere, dedicated, and has sacrificed his whole life to public interest without amassing a fortune for himself or his family, or his 'cronies'. Is there another Malaysian leader like him? If there is, I am sure most Malaysians would like to know who he is.

The reason why Kit Siang is still our leader is because we all want him there.