KUALA LUMPUR, August 28 — Both Iskandar Puteri MP Lim Kit Siang and Port Dickson MP Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim met with one another earlier this week to discuss at length about the narrative forward for the so-called “Malaysia Baharu”.
Deputy Defence Minister Liew Chin Tong tweeted a photo of both Lim and Anwar earlier today, although the location of the meeting was not provided.
“Lim Kit Siang met with Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim earlier today,” Liew said.
“Both prominent individuals have discussed at length on the narrative forward for Malaysia Baharu within the framework of bringing all quarters back to the middle, to keep a distance from all forms of extreme discussions.”
Sdr Lim Kit Siang telah bertemu Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim tempoh hari. Dua tokoh ini telah berbincang panjang tentang naratif ke hadapan Malaysia Baharu, dalam rangka membawa semua pihak kembali ke tengah, menjauhi segala jenis wacana ekstrem. pic.twitter.com/q4vWc6bwpJ
— Liew Chin Tong (@LiewChinTong) August 28, 2019
When queried, Lim reportedly told Malaysiakini that the meeting was just a regular discussion on the current situation and declined to elaborate further.
Last Friday, Liew also tweeted a photo of him accompanying Lim to meet with Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman who is also Youth and Sports Minister.
“We spoke about the alliance of civilisations, nation-building and what else can we do to bring about a stronger sense of solidarity among Malaysians,” he said.
In December last year, Liew had called for a new non-racial national narrative to guide the country, amid racial tensions sparked by the death of a firefighter after riots at a Hindu temple.
The deputy defence minister pointed out that Tun Dr Mahathir had unveiled the idea of Vision 2020 or Bangsa Malaysia in 1991, but Umno moved towards the right in 2005, citing Umno leader Hishammuddin Hussein’s waving of a keris at the Malay nationalist party’s general assembly.
The DAP strategist said ethnic perspectives continue to colour public perceptions of events and national institutions suffered from public distrust.
Liew argued that the “New Malaysia narrative” must have democratic institutions, improve the lives of the bottom 40 per cent, and national political leaders who use a non-racial approach in managing social problems.
