We are in the mid-point of the 15th General Election, and there is one more week to go before Polling, and various issues are becoming clear.

Firstly, UMNO is never so divided partly because UMNO members have to defend corruption and UMNO leaders have no money.

There is no 1MDB money like in the last two general election in 2013 and 2018, when money flowed like water because of the 1MDB scandal and Malaysian taxpayers have to pay for such misuse of money and the mega monstrous 1MDB scandal resulting in Malaysia still owing RM32.08 billion as at June 30, 2022 – according to Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz in Parliament.

Malaysia will be still paying for the 1MDB debts after Najib Razak his 12 years jail sentence in Kajang Prison – but the 15th GE will decide whether Najib will serve his full 12-year jail sentence or walk out of Kajang Prison as a free person.

In the early years of UMNO and the nation, UMNO condemned corruption. The first four UMNO Presidents, Onn Jaafar, Tunku Abdul Rahman, Razak Hussein and Hussein Onn would never have countenanced Malaysia becoming a kleptocracy.

In the early years of UMNO, Tunku Abdul Rahman sold his Penang house to fund UMNO and Tun Razak would not spend public funds to build a swimming pool for his family, but today, UMNO members must defend the 1MDB scandal and corruption.

This has caused a deep divide and psychosis in UMNO – for to be fighters of UMNO, the UMNO members have to defend corruption.

Secondly, Wee Ka Siong is not Tun Tan Cheng Lock of MCA. Cheng Lock fought for the nation although he was never a Minister. Ka Siong fought for his position to be a Cabinet Minister.

For 10 years, Ka Siong dared not question or condemn corruption and the 1MDB scandal, for fear of losing his Cabinet position. Cheng Lock would have acted otherwise, for he would have no hesitation to condemn corruption and the 1MDB scandal if he had been alive.

Ka Siong would tell lies about the Opposition, and I have challenged him to prove what he had said about me. Ka Siong dared not respond and have lapsed into silence.

Cheng Lock would have been in the forefront to restore Malaysia from a second-rate mediocre country into a great world-class plural nation, which Ka Siong opposes.

(Speech by DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang at the DAP 15th General Election political talk in Yong Peng in the parliamentary constituency Ayer Itam on Friday, 11th November 2022 at 5 pm)