He said he was heartbroken over the latter’s “betrayal”.

Pua said he was heartbroken because Amran, who was an assistant producer with DAP’s UbahTV website, could have had a great career in politics like his father before him.

Amran’s father, Ahmad Nor, was one of DAP’s well-known MPs.

Amran had recently alleged that DAP had prepared dozens of leaflets and videos containing “malicious and defamatory propaganda” against BN for distribution during the campaign period.

Pua said Amran had failed to produce any evidence to back his allegations of the existence of a “DAP Red Bean Army”.

“The publicity materials which he produced were leaflets the party had published to inform Malaysians of Barisan Nasional’s corrupt practices, particularly over the 1MDB scandal.

“There is nothing malicious in these publicly available materials which the party printed and published.

“There is nothing in these materials which were racist or religiously inflammatory in nature as alleged by him,” Pua said.

He said Amran himself had produced a series of well-received “Ubahkini” videos touching on Malaysian current affairs.

The most popular edition received more than 970,000 views on Facebook. It criticised Prime Minister Najib Razak’s promised “investments” to US President Donald Trump.

Pua believed Amran had made his allegations against DAP as he was upset that he was not selected as a candidate in the coming polls.

He said prior to joining DAP as an employee, Amran had expressed his hope to be “active in politics”.

“I had stated in no uncertain terms that ‘active in politics, yes, tapi no seat guarantee’.

“His response was collected and matured: ‘If not GE14 … maybe got chance GE15 … it’s a marathon’,” Pua said referring to WhatsApp messages that were exchanged between him and Amran.

“Unfortunately, it appears that greed and impatience have once again gripped him.

“Unknown to me, he had lobbied other party leaders — including Lim Guan Eng and Teresa Kok — to be considered a candidate for the current general election.”

Pua said Amran had first worked with the DAP headquarters as a writer for its Malay newsletter, Roketkini, in 2008.

He subsequently moved to Penang to work as the chief minister’s special officer. However, he left his position several months later due to some issues.

Pua said Amran had reached out to him several times, often asking if he could be considered for a position within the party or as a local councillor.

“In his conversation with me on WhatsApp and in person, he said: ‘I reached 40 years old, sir. Money is not my aim any more. Tumbangkan BN and continuing my dad’s struggle is my priority now.'”

Pua, who is DAP’s national publicity secretary, said he then decided to give Amran a second chance with DAP and hired him as an assistant producer for UbahTV to help the publicity department with more video content.

“This was despite reservations expressed by certain party colleagues, who had previously worked with him.

“I had believed that he was a reformed man and that he was serious about honouring his father’s legacy,” Pua said, adding that Amran joined the DAP publicity department officially in August 2017.

Pua said he felt sorry for Amran’s wife and mother.

“Amran is not a man without talent, and he had a second chance. He has thrown it away for good. I hope, for his family’s sake, the returns are worth the while.”

Click here to get live updates throughout the GE14 season