KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 29 — Malaysia does not belong to Barisan Nasional (BN) alone, Pakatan Rakyat (PR) leaders have said in a stern rebuke to Umno’s Datuk Zaiton Mat who reportedly told those dissatisfied with the ruling coalition to leave the country.
Wanita PKR chief Zuraida Kamaruddin said the suggestion to emigrate was an “uncivilised call” by the Kuantan Wanita Umno chief, and joined several other PR leader in demanding that Zaiton retract her words and apologise to the public.
“No matter how dissatisfied the people are with BN, nobody has ever denied the right of citizenship to the BN members even though they are the minority now.
“Pakatan Rakyat has never asked BN members to leave the country,” the Ampang MP said in a statement here.
The lawmakers also criticised Zaiton for repeating what they said were the same old lines uttered previously by other BN leaders to distract from and cover up the spiralling cost of living under their leadership.
“It shows a very backward and primitive understanding of what democracy is about. Every citizen has the right to criticise Umno and the government, that is their constitutional right ... In short, it’s just sheer arrogance,” PKR vice-president N. Surendran told The Malay Mail Online here.
Surendran also accused Umno and BN of believing that only the ruling coalition represents the country, and for being intolerant by labelling those who voice their thoughts as “unpatriotic”.In comparison, DAP’s Hannah Yeoh pointed out that Malaysia belongs to its people and not any particular political party, as she berated Umno lawmakers for failing to understand the basic fact.
“The loyalty of Malaysian citizens and I are to the sovereignty of this country and not to a government that promised the moon and the stars before the elections, but now has taken revenge against its citizens, including the 51 per cent who chose Pakatan Rakyat, by ignoring the burden of the public from spiralling cost of living,” agreed DAP’s Kasthuri Patto in a statement here.
Patto accused Zaiton for being blinded by her party’s own “archaic” ideology, as she questioned Umno leaders’ right to ask critics to leave the country that they have helped build together.
Agreeing with Patto and Yeoh, Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh accused Zaiton of parroting the words of Umno higher-ups blindly by blurting remarks which are insensitive towards the public’s plight.
“We already have Umno senior leaders using the same arguments insensitive to the public ... By using the same logic, her remarks would translate to ‘if you do not like the BN government, reject BN’,” said the PKR vice-president.
“Umno politicians have so quickly forgotten that the majority of Malaysians have indicated that they ‘do not like’ Umno-BN,” Yeoh added, referring to the majority vote won by PR in the May general elections.
“And if the people were to turn the tables around and apply Umno’s own advice, where will Umno and its members flee to?” she asked.
Surendran suggested that similar remarks were often used by BN leaders when at a loss to explain the series of price hikes towards the public.According to English daily The Star, Zaiton had made the statement on Friday in response to reports on the anti-price hike rally to take place on New Year’s Eve in the country’s capital city here.
In the report, Zaiton said instead of complaining about the government’s shortcomings, those who want BN booted from the government’s seat should leave Malaysia.
In her statement yesterday, Patto demanded that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak take action and demand an apology from those who ask their critics to leave the country.
The Batu Kawan MP also urged Najib to stop BN leaders from labelling BN critics as unpatriotic or anti-nationalists.
“If people do not like BN, then they should understand why. We are supposed to represent the voices of the public, what the people want. You should not rule by what you want, but what the people want,” PAS’ MP for Kota Raja, Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud said.
“Nobody would believe that the government could be overthrown by just a demonstration protesting against price hikes. That is just an excuse,” said the deputy chief of PAS’ women wing.
Zaiton reportedly made the remark after leading a group of about 50 Kuantan and Paya Besar Umno division members to lodge a report at the district police station on Friday.
The report was against the rally, which the authorities have claimed is part of an alleged plot to topple the BN government.
Yesterday, the police listed the names of four non-governmental organisations (NGO) as those allegedly planning to ‘cause trouble’ during New Year’s Eve celebrations next week, but did not disclose further details.
The NGOs named were anti-price hike movement Gerakan Turun Kos Sara Hidup (Turun), PKR-backed group Jingga 13, youth group Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia (SAMM), and student movement Solidariti Mahasiswa Malaysia (SMM).
