DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng has rapped non-Malay and non-Bumiputera Cabinet members for their “deafening silence” over PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang’s controversial remarks of late.
Lim noted that not a single minister or the Cabinet as a collective has repudiated Hadi for his “baseless, divisive, racist and extremist” branding of non-Muslims and non-Bumiputeras as the “roots of corruption” in Malaysia.
“By not daring to get Cabinet to take the correct, principled stand against Hadi’s hate speech, these ministers from MCA, MIC, Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) are condoning, emboldening and legitimatising Hadi’s hostility and hatred against non-Bumiputeras and non-Muslims,” Lim said in a statement today.
He added that their “continued silence” makes such Cabinet members “equally responsible” for the “racism and extremism” by PAS, which has become a cause for concern after the party took things to the next level by asking for international concerts, Oktoberfest and Bon Odori festival to be banned.
Last Saturday (Aug 20), Hadi said corruption must be eradicated in a holistic manner, calling it a “disease” and labelling those who commit graft as “sinners”.
“These groups who chase illicit gains are the ones who eventually control the economy,” he claimed. “They then damage our politics as they are the roots for corruption, and the majority of them are non-Muslims and non-Bumiputras.”
Multiple police reports have since been lodged against the Marang MP over his inflammatory and unsubstantiated remarks, which have angered many.
Lim also noted a previous statement by Hadi where he said non-Muslims have “no right” to take up important ministerial posts in the Cabinet, such as that of the finance minister.
Yet, MCA, MIC, GPS and GRS continue to work with and support PAS and their ministers in the Government, the Bagan MP lamented.
“Keluarga Malaysia just a political spin”
Lim also trained his guns at Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s Keluarga Malaysia concept, which the former claimed has “proven to be a fake and empty piece of political spin” to “deceive, delude and defraud” Malaysians about the latter’s commitment to forging Malaysian unity regardless of race and promoting religious harmony.
“How can Keluarga Malaysia mean anything when the special envoy to the Middle East, with ministerial status, is allowed to escape unpunished for insulting?” Lim asked.
The Air Putih assemblyman further asked when the Royal Malaysian Police Force (PDRM) would act on the reports lodged against Hadi, pointing out that even Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) president Muhammad Mohan had labelled Hadi’s remarks as “racist, potentially seditious and irresponsible”.
Lim noted that Malaysia performed poorly in TI’s Corruption Perception Index (CPI) since the Perikatan Nasional (PN) “backdoor” Government took over in 2020, crashing down 11 spots from 51st place in 2019 to 62nd place in 2021.
“Unless Hadi’s hate speech is stopped, where he blamed race and religion as the root of corruption, Malaysia’s CPI ranking will only deteriorate further in 2022,” he claimed.
He also lamented that Hadi has remained “unrepentant and unashamed” about posing a “clear and present danger” to Malaysian unity and national integration between the peninsular, Sabah and Sarawak. – Aug 28, 2022
Main photo credit: Utusan
