RAKYAT MARHAEN

RAKYAT MARHAEN(New Straits Times) - Online hostilities have broken out between blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin and Pakatan Rakyat supporters upset with his sniping at the loose grouping and its leader, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. Yesterday, Raja Petra announced that he was fighting back and identified freelance writer YL Chong, a contributor to online news portal Malaysia Chronicle, as a target."It appears YL Chong is going out of his way to try to bring me down for whatever reason only he knows. "I don't know what I did to him to make him so full of vile. Anyway, if it is a fight he wants then it is a fight he is going to get," wrote Raja Petra in his blog, Malaysia Today.Raja Petra revealed that YL Chong and Malaysia Chronicle were "sources" in his articles in Malaysia Today which had reportedly published Official Secrets Act documents regarding Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's investigations of former Selangor menteri besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohamad Khir Toyo."Since we are now enemies and since their mission is to bring me down then it is only fair that we see who brings whom down first. "And with that I will no longer protect the source of those documents and will leave it to them to face the music as best they can," he said. Raja Petra claimed that YL Chong and the portal had been writing vicious articles about him, prompting him to accept their challenge for a "duel".YL Chong had recently written in his blog, desiderata2000.blogspot.com, an article titled "With friends like RPK, Haris Ibrahim, PKR doesn't need enemies", condemning Raja Petra's articles on PKR and Anwar.Raja Petra's latest remarks have prompted Malaysia Chronicle editor Wong Choon Mei to issue a statement."Malaysia Chronicle wishes to state in no uncertain terms that YL Chong is not in any way associated with our website other than as a contributor of articles that he has kindly allowed us to publish from time to time."YL Chong is certainly not the owner of our website nor is he on our payroll. But should YL Chong, in future, writes other articles that appeal to the editors at Malaysia Chronicle, we see no reason why we should not publish it - even at the risk of angering the Great RPK." MACC investigation director Mustafar Ali said yesterday it would look into Raja Petra's claims.On Dec 12, the New Straits Times reported that Raja Petra had reiterated his disappointment at what he viewed as the lack of commitment to reforms by Pakatan.After reprimanding Anwar at a London forum on Oct 2 for not honouring campaign promises, the fugitive blogger wrote: "But what is Pakatan Rakyat's excuse? Pakatan Rakyat talks about reforms. But what reforms are they introducing?"