PAKATAN Harapan (PH) backers are unimpressed that opposition-slant supporters are reluctant to accept the apology of Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi whose slip of the tongue caused him to chant “Hidup Israel” on Sunday’s (Aug 4) Himpunan Pembebasan Palestin rally at the Axiata Arena in Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur.
The verbal slip-up amid his fiery speech to a crowd of about 10,000 has become a sore point for the otherwise smooth and peaceful Free Palestinian rally.
Malaysiakini which was at the venue reported that the blunder was met with shouts from the crowd as they tried to correct the UMNO president with one pointing out that there was a “typo” in his speech.
The Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman also mistakenly uttered “Hidup Israel” when he was leading a series of chants later before correcting it with “Hancur Israel” (Destroy Israel) and “Hidup Palestin”.
“In the heat of the moment and in high spirits, I made a mistake in my speech and I hereby apologise for that,” Zahid who is also the Rural and Regional Development Minister penned in a Facebook post yesterday (Aug 5).
“But with a sincere heart and burning spirit, I continued to chant ‘Bebas Palestine!’ (Free Palestine!), ‘Hidup Palestine!’ and ‘Merdeka Palestin’ (Independent Palestine). Allahu Akbar (God is the greatest).”
Although the slip-up is unintentional, pro-opposition keyboard warriors were quick to pounce on Zahid’s gaffe.
“If you slip up once, it might be a mistake. But what if it’s repeated consecutively? Could it be the true portrayal (or betrayal) of the heart?” wondered Hawa Yaakub 🇲🇾 (@YaakubHawa) on the X platform.
If you slip up once, it might be a mistake. But what if it’s repeated consecutively? Could it be the true portrayal (or betrayal) of the heart? pic.twitter.com/PfNGor9Vfx
— Hawa Yaakub 🇲🇾 (@YaakubHawa) August 4, 2024
The post triggered interesting responses with one netizen recalling the incident of a Bersatu Mersing division leader had mistakenly cheered “Hidup Pakatan Harapan (PH)” in a live Astro Awani channel ahead of the Johore state election on March 12, 2022.
Another questioned Zahid’s trustworthiness after he broke his “No Anwar, No DAP” vow to UMNO with BN now being a key ally to PH in the unity government.
One netizen offered two words to sum Zahid’s slip of the tongue – “Freudian slip” (an unintentional error regarded as revealing subconscious feelings) – while another attributed it to divine retribution for betraying one’s own vow before God.
In the meantime, a pro-PH social media influencer came to the 71-year-old Bagan Datuk MP’s verbal slip-up defence by justifying that the latter had nevertheless alternated his blunder with “Hidup Palestin” and “Hancur Israel”.
Datuk Seri Zahid Hamidi hari ni mohon maaf sebab tersasul laung “Hidup Israel” semalam.
Aku harap semua orang faham benda tu tersasul sebab kejap kita laung Hidup Palestin, kejap laung Hancur Israel pic.twitter.com/LaUdmyS0sF
— Irfan_newboys🇲🇾🇵🇸🏳️🏴 (@Marchfoward) August 5, 2024
But even then, some commenters remarked that it was somehow unbecoming for Zahid to have slip of the tongue “on three occasions without reacting to people who tried to correct him”. – Aug 6, 2024
Main image credit: Zahid Hamidi/Facebook
