KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 6 — Founder of local beverage Hausboom, Azri Zahier Azmi has now apologised to Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, hours after first attacking him in a Facebook post.

Azri has also removed the said post in question and replaced it with an apology, after initially accusing the youth and sports minister of not living up to his promise to promote the soft drink.

While apologising for his choice of words towards Syed Saddiq, where he used the word babi, or pig, Azri remained defensive and said his disappointment was over the unfulfilled promises and hope given to not only him, but many others.

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“I admit that I was wrong for using coarse language. As Chef Wan said, possessed by the devil,” he said in reference to an incident when celebrity chef Datuk Redzuawan Ismail had threatened to slap former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

“But I managed to send him and his political team a very clear message — entrepreneurs are not a group of people that you can give empty promises and not fulfill it, and social media is the best channel to get response from politicians,” he wrote.

Azri claimed people would believe whatever Syed Saddiq said about the success of the entrepreneurs as he was a minister, but went on to further those who helped spread his post on social media knew the truth.

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“We do business for religion, and the nation, not because of name (or votes).

“Whatever it is YB Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, I sincerely apologise over my coarse language,” he said.

Azri also claimed he was not complaining about sponsorship costs and purported to have thousands of bottles ready to be given away free.

He said that it only cost him RM192 to engage with the ministry, the ministry could at least reimburse this if it could not deliver.

He also claimed it took four months to obtain the minister’s response, and that he had to use all his connections to remind Syed Saddiq of the pledge.

Yesterday, Syed Saddiq fired back on social media and disclosed that he not only raised the topic of the drink in a Cabinet meeting but also spoke to tycoon Tan Sri Vincent Tan about possibly carrying the product in the 7-11 convenience stores.

Tan’s son, Morvin Tan, confirmed the meeting and topics discussed, before calling the criticism of Syed Saddiq unfair.