Hee Yit Foong

Who is Hee Yit Foong?

Hee Yit Foong is a Malaysian politician who is infamous for her role in the 2009 Perak constitutional crisis by resigning from the Democratic Action Party which she represented in the Malaysia General Election in 2008 and becoming an independent aligned with the ruling Barisan Nasional. Her dramatic action was seen as an act of betrayal by many in her Jelapang constituency and has earned her unpleasant nicknames from the angry voters and Malaysian public such as ‘traitor’ and ‘frog’. She served as Deputy Speaker of the Perak State Legislative Assembly from March 2008 to February 2009. She was a member of the opposition Democratic Action Party from the late 1980s until her resignation in February 2009 which subsequently caused the 2009 Perak constitutional crisis. She is also currently one of a handful of Malaysian politicians with a hatred Facebook group devoted to her.

Hee walks with a limp from a case of polio she contracted at the age of 4. She was state assemblywoman for Jelapang and was the first disabled woman to become the speaker of a Malaysian legislative body.