KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 5 — The Petaling Jaya MCA Youth has urged the police to investigate a dispute involving the party and Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Akmal Salleh over the phrase “crazy horse,” which it claims was deliberately mistranslated to mislead the public.
The youth wing believes the phrase was maliciously translated and distorted, leading to misleading accusations against the party, according to a report published in Malaysiakini today.
“What makes matters worse is that such misinformation could be exploited by ill-intentioned parties, further deepening social divisions and affecting harmony between different ethnic groups,” said MCA Youth deputy chief Lee Yee Yuan.
“Therefore, MCA Youth urge the police to thoroughly investigate the matter to uphold the truth and prevent the further spread of false information,” he added.
The report was lodged by Petaling Jaya MCA Youth chief Teoh Tuck Wah, who was accompanied by Lee and several other party leaders.
Teoh stressed that freedom of speech must be based on facts and reason, rather than misrepresentation and misinformation.
He also urged all parties to verify information before drawing conclusions to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings and conflicts.
“In a diverse society, harmonious coexistence is key to national stability. Rumours and misleading statements should not be allowed to erode mutual trust,” he said.
The controversy began on January 30 when Akmal criticised Johor MCA deputy publicity chief Law Yiak Kwang over his use of the Chinese term ‘癫马’ in social media posts, which directly translates to “crazy horse.”
The Chinese character “马” (mā) means “horse” but can also be used phonetically to represent the “ma” sound in transliterations, including references to Malaysia, Malays, former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, and Dr Akmal himself.
Dr Akmal alleged that the term was being used as an insult to Malays, while Law responded that the phrase meant “Akmal who always acts irrationally.”
Following the dispute, Dr Akmal announced plans to instruct his and Umno Youth’s lawyers to take legal action against Law.
MCA vice-president Datuk Tan Teck Cheng defended Law, urging Dr Akmal to reflect on his own actions rather than making repeated mistakes.
In response, Dr Akmal hit back at Tan, reminding MCA that its only two parliamentary seats are in Malay-majority constituencies.
Umno supreme council member Datuk Mohd Puad Zarkashi also weighed in, calling on MCA to reflect on why it had lost the support of non-Malay voters.