SEBERANG PERAI, April 14 — A withholding of support by PAS in Penang will not hurt Pakatan Rakyat (PR) in the state, said DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng.
"We can't force anyone to support us, it is their own free will, so it is entirely up to them but we will not be negatively affected by these protests.
"It is entirely up to PAS members on whether they want to cooperate with Penang PR and the state government or not," he said in a press conference at St Marks Church here.
He was referring to the weekly protests by Bagan PAS at several mosques after Friday prayers in the last three weeks as a show of support for Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang and against DAP's decision to cut ties with the Islamist party's president over their disagreement on hudud.
The Penang lawmaker said it is everyone's right to organise peaceful demonstrations even if they are against him and DAP.
Lim, who is also Bagan MP, said he is leaving it to Penang PAS to deploy its members for the May 7 Permatang Pauh by-election, a PKR seat.
"As far as the Penang PR leadership is concerned, we are as normal and we recently held a meeting," he said.
On the whether the Penang PR discussed the candidacy for the by-election, Lim said the decision lies entirely with PKR.
The Election Commision has set nominations for April 25, early voting on May 3, and polling on May 7.
