By Asrul Hadi Abdullah Sani - The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 15 — Lim Guan Eng today dismissed Datuk Ibrahim Ali’s rant about the Penang chief minister being “anti-Malay”, declaring he won’t be dragged into a debate with someone who supports racism.
The Perkasa leader said Lim lied about the purported cancellation of this year’s annual Prophet Muhammad’s birthday procession and only overturned the decision when a state government document suggesting the cancellation was leaked to Utusan Malaysia and Umno leaders.
“He (Ibrahim Ali) is the person that supported Nasir Safar and said Nasir Safar’s statement was correct that Indians are beggars whose citizenship should be revoked and that Chinese women came here to sell their bodies. He supported what he said so is it worth replying to a person like that?” Lim told The Malaysian Insider, referring to the prime minister’s political aide who resigned over the derogatory remarks.
“I don’t want to address to a person who supports Nasir Safar’s comment,” the DAP secretary-general declared.
Apart from denying an Utusan Malaysia report about the purported cancellation, Lim has also denied Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s accusation of being anti-Islam for wanting to cancel the march and invited the deputy prime minister and former Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to take part in the three-day state celebrations at the end of the month.
He said that the procession controversy is “pure fiction” concocted by Umno and Utusan Malaysia.
“The whole controversy was generated out of pure fiction. When you talk about announcement, the state government has not made an official announcement about the procession.
“When the announcement was made that that there will both a procession and a huge gathering, it was not printed in the mainstream media,” he said.
Lim pointed out the Umno-controlled Utusan Malaysia only referred to one letter in a series of exchanges within his administration.
“What Umno and Utusan Malaysia referred to was one letter and I asked my exco member immediately when this was raised. I asked him ‘Did you cancel the procession?’
“He answered no and he asked me why I asked him that? I said because Utusan reported it then he said ‘Hey CM, come on lah. Can you trust Utusan Malaysia.’ Then I said yeah. They are trying to use this to stoke racial sentiments,” he added.
A scanned copy of one letter that bore the letterhead of the state secretariat showed that they had decided on Feb 5 to cancel the procession was distributed on the net and a copy was put up at www.rembau.net, the personal website of Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin.
However the Penang government claimed that the scanned copies of such letters were just new ideas outlined by government officials.
The state’s executive councillor for religious affairs, Abdul Malik Abdul Kassim, had also explained that the letters were ideas to change and expand the format of the three-day celebrations starting Feb 25.
Lim said that he is confident that the public won’t be caught in Utusan and Umno’s political propaganda.
“I think they are playing a desperate and dangerous game but what I am also assured that the people will not buy it because when we go to the ground the sentiments are different.
“That is why I said that if you still have doubts about the procession then come on February 26 and see for yourself,” he said.
Lim noted he has no jurisdiction in the issue as it is under Abdul Malik’s portfolio.
“But if you still have doubts over the processions then I invite Muhyiddin and Pak Lah to please come,” he said.
Lim believed that the Umno was trying to use the controversy to bring down the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) government in Penang.
“The allegation is a very dangerous game. For them means justify the ends, anything goes. That lies and fabricated evidence are rule of the day.
“I think there is no more morality, rule of law, no more right or wrong, there is no more justice but there is just pure power play. I think it is a very evil attempt,” he said.
The first-term chief minister has been fighting a resurgence of accusations that he is anti-Malay, culminating in Bayan Baru MP Datuk Seri Zahrain Mohd Hashim quitting PKR yesterday in protest of his administration. Lim has taken great pains to cater to Malay and Muslim sentiments by even taking part in the annual Prophet’s birthday procession two years ago.
Umno has also been intensifying its effort to drive the wedge between them further by depicting the split as antagonism between a Chinese government and frustrated Malay leaders.
Abdul Malik said that Umno is trying to divert the public’s attention.
“This is a very dirty political game. They are trying to change the people’s attention from the big problems affecting the country like Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy case.
“These are efforts by Umno and Barisan Nasional to cause suspicions between the different races and religions. They also cannot accept that Lim Guan Eng is embraced by the Malay and Muslim community,” he told The Malaysian Insider via a text message.
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