Some 300 supporters from Umno, Perkasa and an NGO named Suara Anak-anak Malaysia held a demonstration in downtown Penang this afternoon to protest against Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and Bersih 2.0.

NONE Eight protesters, including SAAM chief Mohamed Ghani Abdul Jiman, were arrested by the police, who deployed some 100 officers and men to thwart the gathering.

The protesters marched about a kilometre from the historic Kapitan Keling Mosque to Komtar after Friday prayers.

They demanded Lim's resignation as chief minister on grounds that he had openly thrown his support behind the Bersih 2.0 rally on July 9, which the police have deemed an illegal assembly.

Protest turns into duck parade

Marching all the way from the mosque along Jalan Chulia and Carnavon Street heading to Komtar, the protestors hit the windshields of cars and violently shoved aside two photographers - one from Chinese press Guan Ming Daily and another from a TV station.

NONE After the arrests and after police sounded the siren for the protestors to disperse, they gathered along Jalan Penang, where several Umno leaders, including Senator Ezam Mohd Nor, gave speeches condemning Lim and the state government.

Ezam, who was former PKR Youth chief, warned Lim that there would be more such protests in the future.

"I believe if we continue to do this, we do not need to wait for the general elections, he would leave before that," he added, to cheers from the crowd.

At about 3.30pm, another group marched from Jalan Penang into the Komtar area, carrying two ducks, and shouting the name of Penang state exco and Batu Maung assemblyman Abdul Malik Abul Kassim. They were poking fun and imitating Malik's voice.

The police, meanwhile, stood watch and allowed them to carry on with their antics. 

Around 4pm, a group of 30 proceeded to the Penang bridge, where they held a separate rally, carrying banners, waving the Malaysian flag and handing flags out to passers-by.

Another journalist from Sin Chew Daily was punched on the back while the protestors warned that they would throw him into the sea if he continued to snap their photos at close range.

This mass of people resulted in a traffic jam along the bridge for about 30 minutes, with the protesters blocking two lanes, but the three traffic policemen present did not take any action.

The demonstrators repeatedly shouted "Guan Eng is a Communist", dubbing him the "most racist leader in the history of the country".

The banners carried messages like "Bumiputeras are in government and Chinese in Opposition, is there any hope for the Penang Chinese?" and "Two coalition = two party system". 

In a related development, Penang police chief Ayub Yaakob confirmed that seven protestors were arrested and will be probed for participating in the "illegal" assembly. The ages of those nabbed are between 27 and 46.

Ayub said the force had been informed earlier about the rally and had deployed its officers to the protest locations to ensure public order.

"We hope this would be the last (protest)," he told reporters at a press conference in Penang.

Reporters also met Bayan Baru MP Zahrain Mohamed Hashim at the police headquarters, where the latter said he was there to speak to the CPO about the protest.

"I wanted to understand what actually happened," he said, adding that the demonstration was not a real one ( tipu ).

When told that several journalist were assaulted during the event, Zahrain distanced himself from the matter, saying he was not involved and did not know the full details.

It is learnt that later, Ezam turned himself in, taking the total number of those arrested to eight.

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