Wong chides Tan for shying away from debate

KUALA LUMPUR: Pakatan Harapan’s candidate for the Balakong by-election, Wong Siew Ki, has challenged her MCA opponent Tan Chee Teong to a debate.

“If Tan really wants to be the people’s voice, this is the time to prove it because in the State Legislative Assembly later, as the people’s representative, he will still have to debate.

“I do not want to think less of Tan but he needs to be brave and find the right time for us to debate on the issue of toll abolishment,” she said.

Wong said she was disappointed that Tan had refused an invitation to debate with each other in Facebook.

The debate on the social media platform was organised by a Chinese newspaper and was scheduled to take place yesterday.

Wong said Tan had previously agreed to the debate but when the press asked him about the matter the MCA candidate said he did not have the time.

“If you want to be a politician, you have to be ready to debate with anyone.

“If you don’t want to debate now, how are you going to debate in the state assembly?”

Wong was speaking after visiting the by-election media centre here yesterday.

Wong acknowledged that the issue involving the repeal of the 1Malaysia People’s Aid (BR1M) and the introduction of the soda tax had slightly dampened the PH campaign.

“Every government policy is the result of an indepth study done and all that is to help the people.

“When PH became the government, the county’s national debt was quite high and our main focus now is to settle the debt without unsettling the people,” she said.

Despite, this, Wong said the PH campaigning had gone into full gear, with a week left before polling day.

She said the PH campaign had covered almost 70 per cent of the entire Balakong constituency.

“I will campaign more actively during the last days before Sept 8,” she said.