DAP reps quit over party policy issues

GEORGE TOWN: DAP veteran and Kota Malacca MP Sim Tong Him has said he quit the party over policy differences and not over a clash of personalities within the party.
He said he did not agree on how DAP was dealing with some internal and external issues.
"Rather than stay in the party and let people cast doubtful eyes on me, or say I am an obstacle or a problem to the party, I might as well quit. I wish the party all the best," he told theSun today.
When reached via text, DAP secretary- general Lim Guan Eng said he will respond tomorrow.
Also quitting the DAP with him was Duyong assemblyman Goh Leong San, Bachang assemblyman Lim Jak Wong and Kesidang assemblyman Chin Choong Seong.
Sim and Goh recently finished their one-year suspension as DAP members. They were suspended for a year after their statements were found damaging to the party's reputation.
With the resignation of the four, the DAP in Malacca has only three state seats – Kota Laksamana, Bandar Hilir and Ayer Keroh – and left with no parliamentary seats.
One of the issues which spurred his decision Sim claimed was DAP seemingly wanting to work with PAS again despite the collapse of Pakatan Rakyat (PR).
He asked what will happen if PAS imposed its own conditions after an opposition coalition managed to garner enough votes to form the federal government in the next general election.
"How to face the voters? ... Are we going to give in?" he questioned and stressed this was his personal view.
On his future, Sim dismissed the idea that he would join another party as he still believed in the "Malaysian Malaysia" ideal of the party.
He said he will be focusing on his constituency work until the current parliamentary term ended.
"(It is) very unlikely I am going to contest because I do not know what is going to be the end scenario," he said when asked if he was going to contest in the coming elections.
Meanwhile Bernama reports DAP Central Working Committee member Liew Chin Tong as saying their actions might be due to their dissatisfaction over their defeat in the state party elections in December, 2015.
"Their reason to quit the party is that they disagreed with DAP cooperating with Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia and Tun Dr Mahathir (Mohamad), but that might just be an excuse.
"What is important now is for DAP to continue with its struggles and to win the people's hearts to topple the Barisan Nasional in the 14th general election," he told a press conference at the Malacca DAP office yesterday.