KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 8 — The Malacca Immigration Department told former soldier Mohd Ali Baharom today they could fend for themselves after the latter warned of an unsafe rally to take place in the state this Saturday following the assault of an immigration officer.

Department deputy director Abu Bakar Sidek Hassan added that his officers have faced far worse threats prior to this, and reiterated that they did not need the protection of individuals like Mohd Ali, who is more popularly known as Ali Tinju.

“We even received death threats before previous incidents and we still carried on. Where was Ali Tinju then?

“We don’t need people like Ali Tinju to fight our battles for us,” he was quoted as saying to local English daily The Star today.

Incidents like that of an immigration officer being beaten up was a risk they accepted as par for the course, Abu Bakar said, adding that it was unnecessary for the incident to be “manipulated” or politicised.

“My men have faced confrontations during raids and we have never complained about it. We take it as a risk factor.

“We don’t want to see the incident manipulated as a political or racial issue. My officers and I were just carrying out our responsibilities in a professional manner to eliminate the existence of illegals in the area following a tip-off,” he said.

He explained the there was no “ulterior motive” to the Malacca Raya inspection as the location was part of the department’s frequent checks at that particular entertainment enclave.

“I don’t understand why the issue has suddenly been blown out of proportion. We never sought any help from Ali Tinju to defend us or utter racially tinged statements,” he said.

Ali Tinju said yesterday that as many as 10,000 #Merah169 followers will descend upon Malacca this Saturday to rally for what he described as justice for a Malay immigration officer allegedly beaten by Chinese gangsters last week.

The former soldier, who heads the Association of Armed Forces Veterans, warned that Malacca Raya, the location where the officer was said to have been assaulted, “would not be safe”, but insisted his warning was not a threat against the Chinese community there, but just “general” advice for everyone to keep safe.

It was reported that a group of men had attacked 19 immigration enforcement officers over a raid the team had conducted on an entertainment outlet on September 30.

On October 3 English daily New Straits Times reported that five suspects have been arrested to facilitate investigations while Inspector General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said the police were on the hunt for more individuals linked to the case.

Ali Tinju was previously investigated for sedition over remarks he made ahead of a riot at the Low Yat Plaza shopping mall in July, which was triggered by a false rumour that a Malay youth was cheated by Chinese traders.

The Attorney-General’s Chambers did not, however, file charges.