Idris replies to Siah’s rebuke on his speech

KUCHING: Muara Tuang assemblyman Dato Idris Buang on Thursday defended his comment on the Nov 13 peaceful NCR rally by stating that he was just asking people to respect the law.

Obviously not happy with state PKR Youth chief Simon Siah for taking a swipe at his statement, Idris said Siah did not properly read and take time to understand his speech and had deliberately taken it out of context to suit his party’s agenda.

“There is no need for Siah to spin the speech,” he said, referring to his speech on the NCR rally when debating on the State Budget at the State Legislative Assembly ( DUN) on Monday.

“All that they ( PKR) have been doing by taking matters to the street and ‘ holding the government at ransom’ of sorts, giving an ultimatum, do not augur well with our culture of peace and solidarity. Demos like that only serve to further feed the appetite of some foreign news agencies which like to scoop on such ‘political circus’,” Idris said.

“I have said what needed to be said. My speech is simple. I merely asked them (street protestors) to respect the law and appreciate the environment of peace and solidarity we mutually keep,” he stressed.

Siah on Wednesday issued a lengthy response including asking Idris to at least read the judgement of cases in which the natives had lost their claims in court and therefore losing their land to land developers or plantation companies simply because the duly recognised native customary rights on land – the Pemakai Menoa and Pulau Galau – have not been afforded the so- called ‘ force of law’.