Lim Lip Eng - another 'street style' MP
Andrew OngPublished: May 10, 2008 5:34 PM | Updated: May 11, 2008 1:06 PM
Newly-elected PKR Batu MP Tian Chua made his name, probably unintentionally, through his controversial ways in public which often see him brushing up the wrong side of the law.
opinion
There is a new ‘street style’ politician in town and at the moment, nothing is going to hold him back from his no-holds-barred style of serving his constituents.
Newly-elected PKR Batu MP Tian Chua made his name, probably unintentionally, through his controversial ways in public which often see him brushing up the wrong side of the law.
Over the years, he had been charged numerous times for participating in illegal assemblies, held under the Internal Security Act and more recently being tried for allegedly biting a police officer.
But his most famous exploit that made him a household name among Malaysian activists was sitting cross-legged in front of a Federal Reserve Unit water cannon truck in 1998 during the height of the reformasi movement.
It has been 10 years since the incident and one would have thought that Chua’s act would have been lost to the annals of history until it was repeated on Thursday night by an up-and-coming DAP politician.
Enter Lim Lip Eng, a lawyer-cum-politician, who was recently elected as the parliamentarian for Segambut.
On Thursday night, amidst 500 Bandar Mahkota Cheras (BMC) residents who could only helplessly witness a highway concessionaire erect a barricade to their toll-free access road, Lim single handedly stop the concessionaire’s construction work.
The bald-headed MP was seen pulling wires off welding machines needed by the concessionaire’s workers and chased them off, prompting the residents to celebrate and the Federal Reserve Unit being mobilised to disperse the crowd.
Another Kok Wai?
Following this, Lim stood in front of a water cannon truck to prevent it from advancing and spraying the residents.
For his efforts, Lim was allegedly clobbered by several plainclothes police officers to the point where he needed to be hospitalised the following day.
Pictures of the incidents were splashed across the Chinese dailies and he had become an overnight sensation among the Chinese-speaking community.
Across blogs and forums, Chinese-speaking netizens showered Lim with praise for his one-man human shield act and willingness to make personal sacrifices for the common folk.
Whether he was driven by conscience, a sudden streak of insanity or just sheer tomfoolery, one thing is for certain - Lim has sealed his reputation as a people’s champion.
Commentators are also drawing parallels between Lim’s performance and long-serving DAP Cheras MP Tan Kok Wai’s defiance of the federal government in a similar anti-toll movement in 1990.
Then a first-time MP, Tan was held under the Internal Security Act for leading tens of thousands of Cheras folks in a series of rowdy demonstrations against the Jalan Cheras toll booth for days. He had been re-elected in every election since.
Similarly, Lim had been the legal advisor to the BMC Open Road Committee since last year and after being elected as a wakil rakyat, had intensified his work with the committee, even though his constituency is hardly even near BMC.
It is justified?
To many of Lim’s friends and party comrades, he is a soft spoken and hardworking devout Methodist Christian.
But when he is out on the field with the common folk, he turns into a hard talking and no-nonsense ‘street fighter’ out to tackle the wrongs in society.
While his take-the-bull-by-the-horns approach had won some praise, certain DAP leaders are less than pleased by his demeanour.
“He is can overly aggressive at times. That’s not how a wakil rakyat is supposed to behave,” said one DAP leader on condition of anonymity.
Another DAP leader told Malaysiakini however that Lim’s tactics are justified if he did not overstep any boundaries.
“Certain police personnel, for example, don’t know how to behave rationally. In view of that, you can’t expect Lim to behave like a gentleman when facing such 'warlords',” he said.
The DAP leader added that Lim, who had taken up a lot of criminal cases throughout his legal career, knows the police psyche well.
The leader pointed out that Lim had already identified himself and his motives to the authorities during the incident at the BMC barricade and his actions had its merits.
“Being loud doesn’t mean he is being disrespectful or rude,” added the leader.
Police have to be neutral
As it turns out, even Lim’s wife doesn’t really approve of his tactics that night, at least initially.
“Other than the bruises, my car was damaged and my shirt was torn. Needless to say, she was quite unhappy. But after reading accounts on newspapers and Malaysiakini, she told me I did the right thing,” said Lim when met today.
Lim said in his experience as a lawyer and activist, he had found police personnel to be good in general but there are a few who abuse their power.
“In the case of BMC, the police were supposed to be neutral and ensure no untoward incidents happened... there was no trouble until they fired tear gas into the crowd.
“They have portrayed themselves to look like they are siding the highway concessionare,” he added.
Just two days after being elected, the newly-minted MP already created an impression among his new constituents and journalists by heading right down to work with micro-level issues.
If the BMC barricade incident is any indication, Malaysians can expect to see more of Lim’s unconventional ways in the future.
SPECIAL REPORT: The Grand Saga in Cheras
Over the years, he had been charged numerous times for participating in illegal assemblies, held under the Internal Security Act and more recently being tried for allegedly biting a police officer.
But his most famous exploit that made him a household name among Malaysian activists was sitting cross-legged in front of a Federal Reserve Unit water cannon truck in 1998 during the height of the reformasi movement. It has been 10 years since the incident and one would have thought that Chua’s act would have been lost to the annals of history until it was repeated on Thursday night by an up-and-coming DAP politician. Enter Lim Lip Eng, a lawyer-cum-politician, who was recently elected as the parliamentarian for Segambut.
On Thursday night, amidst 500 Bandar Mahkota Cheras (BMC) residents who could only helplessly witness a highway concessionaire erect a barricade to their toll-free access road, Lim single handedly stop the concessionaire’s construction work.
The bald-headed MP was seen pulling wires off welding machines needed by the concessionaire’s workers and chased them off, prompting the residents to celebrate and the Federal Reserve Unit being mobilised to disperse the crowd.
Another Kok Wai?
Following this, Lim stood in front of a water cannon truck to prevent it from advancing and spraying the residents.
For his efforts, Lim was allegedly clobbered by several plainclothes police officers to the point where he needed to be hospitalised the following day.
Pictures of the incidents were splashed across the Chinese dailies and he had become an overnight sensation among the Chinese-speaking community.
Across blogs and forums, Chinese-speaking netizens showered Lim with praise for his one-man human shield act and willingness to make personal sacrifices for the common folk.
Whether he was driven by conscience, a sudden streak of insanity or just sheer tomfoolery, one thing is for certain - Lim has sealed his reputation as a people’s champion.
Commentators are also drawing parallels between Lim’s performance and long-serving DAP Cheras MP Tan Kok Wai’s defiance of the federal government in a similar anti-toll movement in 1990. Then a first-time MP, Tan was held under the Internal Security Act for leading tens of thousands of Cheras folks in a series of rowdy demonstrations against the Jalan Cheras toll booth for days. He had been re-elected in every election since.
Similarly, Lim had been the legal advisor to the BMC Open Road Committee since last year and after being elected as a wakil rakyat, had intensified his work with the committee, even though his constituency is hardly even near BMC.
It is justified?
To many of Lim’s friends and party comrades, he is a soft spoken and hardworking devout Methodist Christian.
But when he is out on the field with the common folk, he turns into a hard talking and no-nonsense ‘street fighter’ out to tackle the wrongs in society.
While his take-the-bull-by-the-horns approach had won some praise, certain DAP leaders are less than pleased by his demeanour.
“He is can overly aggressive at times. That’s not how a wakil rakyat is supposed to behave,” said one DAP leader on condition of anonymity.
Another DAP leader told Malaysiakini however that Lim’s tactics are justified if he did not overstep any boundaries.“Certain police personnel, for example, don’t know how to behave rationally. In view of that, you can’t expect Lim to behave like a gentleman when facing such 'warlords',” he said.
The DAP leader added that Lim, who had taken up a lot of criminal cases throughout his legal career, knows the police psyche well.
The leader pointed out that Lim had already identified himself and his motives to the authorities during the incident at the BMC barricade and his actions had its merits.
“Being loud doesn’t mean he is being disrespectful or rude,” added the leader.
Police have to be neutral
As it turns out, even Lim’s wife doesn’t really approve of his tactics that night, at least initially.
“Other than the bruises, my car was damaged and my shirt was torn. Needless to say, she was quite unhappy. But after reading accounts on newspapers and Malaysiakini, she told me I did the right thing,” said Lim when met today.
Lim said in his experience as a lawyer and activist, he had found police personnel to be good in general but there are a few who abuse their power.
“In the case of BMC, the police were supposed to be neutral and ensure no untoward incidents happened... there was no trouble until they fired tear gas into the crowd.
“They have portrayed themselves to look like they are siding the highway concessionare,” he added.
Just two days after being elected, the newly-minted MP already created an impression among his new constituents and journalists by heading right down to work with micro-level issues.
If the BMC barricade incident is any indication, Malaysians can expect to see more of Lim’s unconventional ways in the future.
SPECIAL REPORT: The Grand Saga in Cheras
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