The former premier opened the Malay rights movement’s inaugural congress today, where Ibrahim accused DAP and its “Malaysian Malaysia” slogan of being among the causes of the 1969 race riots.

“From the incendiary speech of the Perkasa president, Datuk Ibrahim Ali, it is clear that Perkasa is built on stilts of lies,” the DAP Parliamentary Leader said in a statement.

The veteran opposition leader called it a “lie that DAP and the Malaysian Malaysia slogan were among the main factors that caused the May 13 riots”, questioning the Pasir Mas MP for taking 41 years after the 1969 riots to make the “discovery”.

“If DAP and Malaysian Malaysia were the causes of May 13 in 1969, DAP would have been banned long ago and DAP leaders would have languished in jail and unable to participate in Malaysian electoral politics in the past nine general elections.

“Or is Ibrahim suggesting that the Special Branch and the past five prime ministers had been remiss in their national duties in failing to take action against DAP, which he alleged as a threat to national security and  perpetrator of May 13 riots?” asked the Ipoh Timur MP.

He stressed that it was a lie that the DAP is against the Malays, Islam and wants to do away with the Malay Rulers, a recurrent theme in Perkasa and among ultra-nationalists in Umno, which dominates the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition.

Lim noted that Ibrahim had sought his help as Parliamentary Opposition Leader when he was trying to escape detention under the Internal Security Act for his activities as a student leader. “Why seek my help if DAP leaders were so anti-national and disloyal as he now wants to depict?” he asked.

But the DAP leader said Ibrahim Ali was not as important as the “patronage given to the neo-NEP Perkasa by Mahathir”.

“Mahathir has come full circle, from an ultra back again to an ultra — repudiating Bangsa Malaysia and Vision 2020 which he enunciated in 1991.

“This is the greatest tragedy,” said Lim of his rival in Parliament between 1974 and 2004.