FOLLOWING a flash mob violence in Batu Pahat recently, Umno supreme council member Datuk Puad Zarkashi lashed out at Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) for missing the forest for the trees.
“When residents of Parit Raja, Batu Pahat raised banners of ‘Kerajaan Gagal’, I called upon Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to face reality.
‘Instead, Bersatu supreme council member Mohd Faiz Na’aman called for Umno to take disciplinary against me. He even called me a political animal.
“It looks like Faiz is also living in his own world. He simply accused those who joined the protest as Mat Rempits,” he said, in a Facebook post.
A few days ago, a group held a protest in Parit Raja, carrying banners of “Kerajaan Gagal”. A video clip, which went viral, showed the mob burning flares while riding motorcycles around the area.
Two days ago, Batu Pahat district police chief Ismail Dollah confirmed receiving a police report on the matter and had apprehended an individual to help in investigation.
“The complainant saw a video of an assembly, flares and an incident in which a banner carried the words ‘failed government’ while browsing social media.
“The complainant also found the said assembly failed to comply with the (COVID-19) SOPs set by the Government,” Malaysiakini reported him saying.
Touching on the matter, Puad said that the Government should understand that people are upset and venting out their frustration over how the country is being run.
He added that if Faiz was unhappy about the youths not following SOP, the latter should also reprimand Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, where the latter was seen not wearing a mask when entering Hotel Zenith, Johor Bahru on March 31 to attend party meeting.
Puad added that even former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak questioned the double standards by Bersatu leaders when it came to following SOP.
“The Pekan MP is a good example. He breached the SOP and admitted his fault. Najib went to the police station and paid his compound with no fuss.
“Is Faiz that shameless? There are many cases of Bersatu leaders breaching SOPs which is left untouched until today.
“And what about the exposes made by former Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Hamid Bador and the silence on the rape case implicating Gombak Setia lawmaker Muhammad Hilman Idham?” the former deputy minister asked. – May 15, 2021.
