“DO taxpayers have the right to say no?”
Such was the so-called jackpot question posed by a commenter after Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan a.k.a. Tok Mat expressed hope that Malaysians will accept with open arms 15 Palestinian “freedom fighters” some of whom have languished for more than 30 years in Israeli jails.
With regard to expenditure, the UMNO deputy president said Wisma Putra alone has raised RM99 mil to help the Palestinians of which RM67 mil has already been disbursed.
“Please do not say that we are providing milk to the monkeys in the forests when there are hungry Malaysians in our midst,” pleaded the Rembau MP. “We are merely carrying out our duty as a responsible member of the international community.”
Malaysia prepares to accept 15 Palestinian prisoners, says Mohamad Hasanhttps://t.co/tHzsGv3zuH https://t.co/tHzsGv3zuH
— The Star (@staronline) March 18, 2025
In fact, if all goes well, the Palestinians would be arriving here soon, according to Tok Mat.
Although he fell short of addressing if such goodwill exercise poses security threat to the country or where specifically the relevant authorities will be housing the ex-prisoners, he explained that one of the conditions of the ceasefire and exchange of hostages’ deal is that some of the Palestinians released from Israeli jails will not be allowed to return to Gaza.
“Thus, this gesture (accepting them) is our small contribution to ensure peace in Gaza,” he told the media at the closing of the Khatam Al-Quran event organised by the PEKERTI (Association of Wives of Barisan Nasional elected representatives and senior state government officials) to mark Nuzul Quran.
Editor’s Note: It is now uncertain if the “Palestinian freedom fighters” will ever be making their way to Malaysia given the fragile two-month-old Israeli-Hanas ceasefire was shattered yesterday (March 18) with at least 404 Palestinians killed and 562 wounded after Tel Aviv launched a massive assault on Gaza.
Apart from being wary about the use of taxpayers’ money to fund the re-settlement process of the “freedom fighters”, one commenter lamented that the notion of “charity should start at home” has been grossly overlooked.
“Refugees get re-settled but KL folk can’t even get a rumah mampu milik (affordable home). Hero overseas, zero at home!” he chided.
Another commenter reminded about the ruckus sparked by some of the Palestinian women who were let into Malaysia for medical-related treatment at their holding house.
“And these are Palestinian fighters hardened by fighting and stints in Israeli jails. Learnt any lessons from Jordan and Lebanon?” she reminded.
Last but not least, a commenter has a brilliant solution in mind – “each UMNO minister (perhaps deputy ministers as well) to accommodate each of the 15 freedom fighters”. – March 19, 2025
