Karpal: ‘I may need to get a bodyguard’

(The Star) – DAP chairman Karpal Singh said he now has to seriously consider getting a bodyguard following the threats and scuffle at the Parliament on Thursday.

The menacing manner in which the Umno Youth members confronted him was more than cause for concern, he said on Friday

“This is the first time such thing has happened in Parliament. Nobody has ever intimidated a Member of Parliament,” he said adding that the Umno Youth group of 10 to 15 had waited for him in Parliament before harassing him.

Karpal was responding to the scuffle in Parliament on Thursday where a group of Umno Youth members confronted him and prevented him from entering the House until he apologised for calling them ‘celaka’.

“The security in Parliament should be strengthened and I will on Monday ask the Speaker about the steps taken to tighten security,” he said in a telephone interview.

“There must be strict vetting and whoever brings guests should just stay in the public gallery and be guided out,” he said.

For now, his assistant Michael Cornelius, 34, and driver Henry Quico, 47, would have accompany him wherever he goes, he said.

Due to his handicap, Karpal Singh’s assitant Michael, from Chennai, India, helps him with his daily needs after he became wheelchair-bound after an accident in 2005.

Meanwhile, in George Town, the confrontation that took place in the Parliament compound was embarrassing and disgusting, said Penang Chief Minister and DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng.

He said it was wrong for the group of Umno Youth members to confront and block DAP chairman Karpal Singh from entering the House and carrying out his duty as an elected MP (for Bukit Gelugor) on Thursday.

“The incident was embarrassing as it showed disrespect for the Parliament, which is the highest and most prestigious institution in Malaysia. The act of gangsterism by the Umno members showed that they have no respect for the law and elected MPs.

“I also feel disgusted by the group’s statements and their action in threatening the safety of Karpal Singh, a disabled person in a wheelchair,” said Lim on Friday.

He called on Umno to apologise to all Malaysians for their statements and for tarnishing Malaysia’s image, and also called for strict action to be taken against the group for threatening Karpal Singh’s safety and that of the MPs who went to his aid.

Lim, who is also Bagan MP, said he appreciated that Backbenchers Club chairman Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing had apologised over the incident, but felt it was only right that Umno do so too.

“The (in house) police should give an explanation for their failure to control the peace in Parliament because, like it or not, the police is seen as allowing this rude and uncivilised wrongful act to happen.”

On Karpal Singh’s use of the word ‘celaka’ in reference to Umno Youth during his debate speech on Wednesday and his allegation that Umno was responsible for the two bullets he had received in the mail, Lim said the statement was made in the House and it was up to the Speaker to take any action.