KUCHING, Sept 15 — A Sarawak Barisan Nasional (BN) leader accused today the people pushing a “red shirt” rally in the national capital tomorrow of detracting from the significance of Malaysia’s founding which falls on the same day.
Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) president Tan Sri Dr James Masing said all BN’s component parties from both Borneo states had voiced their strong objection to the “red shirt” rally during their coalition supreme council meeting in Kuala Lumpur last night.
“September 16 is a very special date for Sarawak and Sabah because on this day in 1963, the two Borneo states, together with Malaya and Singapore, formed the Federation of Malaysia,” he said.
“So, we do not want Malaysia Day celebration to be tainted by unnecessary mob street rally,” he added.
He said the component parties had made their stand clear to BN chairman and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
The controversial rally is organised by Persekutuan Silat Kebangsaan Malaysia (Pesaka), headed by Umno veteran and former Malacca chief minister Tan Sri Mohd Ali Rustam, and is to kick off at Padang Merbok, in Kuala Lumpur.
The rally initially called on Malays to unite and counter the purportedly Chinese-dominated two-day Bersih 4 rally on August 29 and 30, but has since been promoted as a gathering of the people without taking into account their racial background.
Masing said PRS opposes any form of street protest, whether it is the red shirt or the Bersih 4 rallies, for whatever reasons.
“We have objected to the staging of street rallies before to express our feelings. It is dangerous and unhealthy. It is not constitutional,” he added.
Masing said any party or group not happy with the present government can use the ballot boxes to elect a new government.
“We have constitutional method of electing our government which was agreed upon by our founding fathers. But do not change it by illegal means just because we lost the game,” he added.
