KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 3 — Perkasa has come to the defence of Datuk Mohammad Kazim Elias, insisting the popular Islamic preacher’s “master and slave” observations about the Malays and non-Malays were depictions of the truth and not in any way racist.

Several leaders from the Malay rights group spoke out yesterday in separate statements to back Kazim, who has been accused in a police report of stoking racial unrest for saying in a 2009 lecture that while the Chinese and Indians drank and partied in nightclubs, the Malays were out defending the country.

Perkasa president Datuk Ibrahim Ali demanded to know Umno’s stand in the controversy, noting that the ruling party’s leaders have in the past criticised his group with racist allegations.

“From this moment, we no longer need to worry about racist, chauvinist and extremist allegations (against us) because even Kazim Elias has been accused like Perkasa,” Ibrahim wrote in a brief statement on the group’s Facebook page, Buletin Perkasa.

“So, what are the attitudes of the Malays, especially Umno leaders, who before this have ridiculed and insulted Perkasa?” he asked, listing down as examples ministers like Khairy Jamaluddin, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz and Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed, Sabah speaker Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak, and former deputy minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah.

In a separate statement, Perkasa Youth chief Irwan Fahmi Ideris urged the police to study and act against the police report against Kazim fairly and justly to protect the integrity of the uniformed authorities.

“Damn those who only know to insult, berate and curse our effort in defending the dignity of the religion, race and country. There is no benefit we can get from them,” Irwan said.

“What was said by Kazim was true. We should be aware and awaken from our slumber.”

Perkasa’s Selangor chapter also released another statement, pointing out that Perkasa has in the past issued similar remarks like Kazim, and insisted that the real enemies are those who try to disrupt inter-racial unity.

“We question the contribution of the racial extremists towards the country, in refining the respectful relationship between races in the country,” its chief Abu Bakar Yahya said.

“We believe the groups’ biggest contribution is only to stoke division among the public, in addition to promote racist agenda through chauvinist ideology.”

Popular independent preacher Kazim was thrown into spotlight after a video of his six-year-old lecture resurfaced recently, showing him berating the Chinese and Indian community for neglecting the country.

In the video, Kazim claimed that the Chinese are busy drinking and having fun in discos, and the Indians in nightclubs or robbing others, while the Malays are sacrificing their lives serving the country as soldiers, police officers, firefighters, and cleaners.

“Gentlemen, try looking at Chinese homes, or what are they doing hanging out in their shops. They are freely drinking, going to discos. Malay soldiers are busy in the jungle, in the middle of the sea,” Kazim said in a recorded lecture dating to 2009, which was uploaded to Youtube two years later.

“Now who is the master, who is the slave? … Our race is guarding the jungles. Where are the Chinese? Are there Hindus? How many Hindus are soldiers? Many are robbers. Freely going to Giant, nightclubs, wearing sexy clothes, hanging out in Tesco,” he added, naming two hypermarkets.

The video has since earned the ire of at least one ethnic Chinese group in Tumpat, Kelantan which lodged a police report against the video yesterday after receiving snippets of it through text messaging app WhatsApp.

In a copy of the report sighted by Malay Mail Online, the president of the Kg Jambu, Tumpat residents’ association lodged a report against Kazim’s remarks yesterday for humiliating the Chinese community and stoking racial unrest.

Perkasa Youth and its Perak chapter have since lodged a counter-police report in Manjoi, Perak this morning to defend Kazim, and planned to meet the preacher afterwards to express their support.