Malay NGOs want Ambiga’s citizenship revoked

GEORGE TOWN: Bersih 2.0 leader S Ambiga’s citizenship is being questioned again. This time two Malay groups want her citizenship revoked for allegedly challenging the King’s authority.
Perkasa north-east branch head Mohd Rizuad Mohd Azudin and Pesatuan Suara Anak-Anak Malaysia (PSAM) head Mohamed Ghani Abdul Jiman both claimed that Ambiga had defied the King’s command to stop all rallies in the country.
On Sunday the King said any rally would bring more harm than good to the country, but the duo claimed Ambiga was stubborn not to call off the planned Bersih Rally 2.0 this Saturday.
Both accused Ambiga of being ‘arrogant’ to seek a Royal audience at Istana Negara before deciding whether or not to call of any rally.
They claimed Ambiga clearly defied the order and challenged the King when she said that she would only halt the rally if the King personally commanded Bersih to do so.
“Ambiga arrogance is appalling…her citizenship should be revoked immediately. She should leave Malaysia to live in another country if she feels that can better serve her interests,” said both Rizuad and Ghani at a joint press conference.
Malaysian opposition-backed activists said yesterday that they would scrap the rally on Saturday if the country’s constitutional monarch personally urged them to do so.
Today, Ambiga agreed to move the Bersih rally to indoor after meeting the King at Istana Negara.
Perkasa and Umno youth wing have also expressed willingness to cancel their own rallies meant to counter the Bersih rally.
Police reports lodged
Yang diPertuan Agong Mizan Zainal Abidin warned in a rare political statement late on Sunday that street demonstrations “bring more bad than good”. He said demands for democracy should not destroy the country and urged the government and Bersih to resolve the matter through dialogue.
Earlier Malacca Chief Minister Ali Rustam has called on the federal government to strip Ambiga of her citizenship.
Yesterday a group of 10 NGOs led by Alternative Action Team submitted a memorandum the Tuanku Mizan through a palace official to revoke Ambiga’s citizenship.
Early this morning, Rizuad and Ghani, who also heads Persatuan Suara Anak-Anak Mamak Pulau Pinang, lodged separate police reports against comments in two blog spots that allegedly criticised the King over his command to halt Bersih rally.
In their reports lodged at Jalan Patani city police headquarters, the duo had identified the two alleged anti-Pakatan Rakyat blog spots as www.pisau.net and papagomo.blogspot.com.
Guan Eng should go

In another development, the duo also lashed out at Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng for supporting the Bersih rally.
They said that Lim should relinquish his post as the chief minister for ordering the state police to take against them for holding a rally last Friday.
They accused Lim of practicing double-standards and being hypocritical by directing the police to take severe action on them.
“However, on the other hand, Lim supports the illegal assembly Bersih rally 2.0. It’s hypocritical… he should quit and leave Penang,” they said.
Both were among eight arrested during the rally which turned violent last Friday. The rally was led by Ghani.
All those detained, including Umno’s Senator Ezam Mohd Nor, were released within hours without any charges.
The violent and noisy protest after the Friday prayers against the Pakatan Rakyat state government and the Bersih rally.
Ghani and Rizuad said their groups would continue to demonstrate against the Pakatan government if Lim’s administration continued with its racist policies ala communist ideology.
“We will step up out monitoring on Lim’s governance. He is a communist-minded person,” said Ghani.