KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 22 — Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh today hit back at critics who questioned her ability to oversee the Federal Territories portfolio on the basis of her ethnicity, saying that skin colour has never defined her work as a lawmaker or Cabinet member.

Yeoh officially assumed her role as minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of the Federal Territories amid Opposition criticism of her race and political background.

“Race or skin colour has never defined or limited my work,” Yeoh, who previously headed the Youth and Sports Ministry, said in a statement on Facebook. 

“My mind and my heart have always been fully committed to serving the people. I am ready to hit the ground running and let my track record speak for itself.”

Yeoh, who is now deputy secretary-general of the DAP, has had a steady political rise since being elected Subang Jaya assemblyman in 2008. 

She later became the first woman Speaker of the Selangor Legislative Assembly before winning the Segambut parliamentary seat in 2018.

After her election to Parliament, she was appointed deputy minister of women, family and community development under the first Pakatan Harapan government, and later served in the Youth and Sports Ministry.

Yeoh again made history as the first ethnic minority to helm the Federal Territories Ministry, a position previously reserved for senior Umno leaders during six decades of Barisan Nasional rule.

But the Opposition quickly used her appointment to revive claims of a supposed Chinese conspiracy to undermine the Bumiputera position in the three federal territories – an allegation dismissed as baseless by the government, including current Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

Yeoh said her track record demonstrates a focus on policy and delivery, with integrity and transparency at the centre of her work. 

She pledged to strengthen collaboration with MPs from Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan.

“My focus has always been on policy, delivery and results.

“Drawing from these experiences, my administration will prioritise close collaboration with all elected Members of Parliament within the Federal Territories. As the people’s representatives, they understand the heartbeat of their constituencies. 

“There is no greater democratic voice to hear. The voice of the people is sacred,” she said.