Frog and snake now political pawns

First, the MIC brought a frog to its annual meeting saying it represents the Perkasa leader. In retaliation, Perkesa burned rubber snakes, saying they represent the Indian community.

PETALING JAYA: The slanging match between Malays rights group Perkesa and other political parties is putting the frog and the snake in a bad light.

The apolitical frog and snake have now being held up as a symbols of hatred by both Perkasa and the MIC.

Bukit Bintang MIC division chief S Ananthan brought a frog to the MIC annual general meeting last month, claiming that it represents Perkasa chief, Ibrahim Ali.

Yesterday, Perkasa members torched several copies of The Star for offending Muslims by including non-halal delicacies in its “Ramadan Delights” column.

And for good measure, they also burned rubber snakes in retaliation against Ananthan’s frog stunt.

“He brought a frog, so we brought snakes to represent the community,” Perkasa Youth chief Irwan Fahmi Ideris said in an online news portal.

But today Ananthan thanked Irwan for relating the snake with the community.

“The Chinese and Indians believe snakes are divine creatures. So thank you, Irwan, for calling us divine,” he said.

Blatantly racist

Ananthan is angry because no action has been taken against Ibrahim for being so blatantly racist and inciting racial tension.

He told FMT that since the authorities are keeping silent, the movement obviously enjoyed immunity from criminal charges.

“With many reports lodged against it, the police are reluctant to clamp down on Perkasa. This shows Umno is behind the movement,” said Ananthan.

He warned the Umno leadership that its indifference towards Perkasa’s tirades would only alienate the Chinese and Indians further from the ruling coalition.

“The Malay votes are already split among Umno, PAS and PKR. You need the Chinese and Indians,” said Ananthan.

DAP Selangor legal bureau chief V Ganabatirao echoed Ananthan’s sentiments, saying that BN would pay a high price in the polls for its tacit support of Perkasa.

‘Uncivilised behaviour’

“While the six PSM members were detained for no reason, the home ministry and the police seem to be powerless against a small group like Perkasa,” said Ganabatirao.

On June 26, the police arrested six Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) members, including Sungai Siput MP Dr Michael D Jeyakumar, under the Emergency Ordinance (EO) for allegedly trying to wage war against the King.
The arrest triggered a massive uproar against the government which subsequently released the detainees on July 29.

On yesterday’s incident, Ganabatirao condemned Perkasa members for behaving in an uncivilised manner.

“I urge the police to use the Sedition Act against them. Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s so-called 1Malaysia concept has become a joke due to Perkasa’s charade,” he said.

Meanwhile, PKR vice-president N Surendran said Perkasa’s rubber snake stunt was nothing more that a reflection of the right-wing members’ mentality.

“It doesn’t even merit a response. It’s better to ignore this extremist group,” said Surendran.