KUALA LUMPUR, March 1 — An aide to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak accused PKR leader Nurul Izzah Anwar of whitewashing her role in the protest against the government’s plan to redevelop Kampung Kerinchi in 2012.

Datuk Seri Tengku Sarifuddin Tengku Ahmad alleged that the Lembah Pantai MP lied when she denied telling residents to take legal action against the government to prevent the demolition of the Kerinchi public flats to make way for new development.

"She decided to wash her hands clean from the responsibility towards some of the Kerinchi flats residents who took the matter to court and blame the residents instead by saying she was only a facilitator,” he said in a statement today.

"But the reality is, she is an instigator. For years, she has been opposing the government and tried to influence them from backing a project that was meant to benefit them,” he added.

During a visit to Lembah Pantai last week, the prime minister criticised Nurul Izzah for what he claimed was an attempt to sabotage the redevelopment of the Kerinchi flats by instigating some residents to initiate a civil suit.

Najib said thanks to the support of other residents for the development of the Kerinchi Residences over their flats, they have each been given a unit at the new condominium worth RM500,000, according to news report.

In response, Nurul Izzah denied suggesting that affected residents take legal action against the federal Barisan Nasional government.

She also insisted that she had the best interest of her constituents, citing her role in initiating dialogues with all stakeholders as proof.

"For the 400 and more families of Kampung Kerinchi, I invited legal, real estate and valuation experts to share their impartial insights, arranged a dialogue session between PKNS and the residents, to assist these families in evaluating their options.

"Ultimately, the decision to take court action was not mine — as a Member of Parliament — to make, but one made by the residents involved,” she said in a statement.

Tengku Sarifuddin, however, called Nurul Izzah irresponsible for refusing to apologise or acknowledge that the project she protested against had benefitted the residents.

"Not a single word of explanation written to provide a solution, and not one bit of sympathy shown,” he said.