Nurul Izzah: Roadshow won't help servicemen

PKR has lashed out at Umno Youth's planned anti-communismroadshow, claiming that the entourage of army and police veterans participanting were being exploited.

PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar said that if Umno was serious about standing up for servicemen and women, the party should champion better welfare for veterans as well as their rights to vote freely in elections.

“Would it not have been better if Umno channels the time, money and energy to support Malaysian veterans who are in need of various kinds of assistance, rather than on these expensive roadshows?

“After all, its mouthpiece Utusan Malaysia is already falling over itself in slandering PAS, Mohamad Sabu and Pakatan Rakyat in general,” said Nurul Izzah in a statement today.

Umno would also be more productive if it would spend more time supporting national bodies such as the Armed Forces Trust Fund Board (LTAT) and other servicemen organisations, she said.

“Working with these organisations - to fight to purchase Exxonmobilassets in Malaysia, for instance - will probably do more to help our heroes and further the national interest than embarking upon narrow partisan political activity,” she said.

Nurul Izzah said that if Umno was truly serious about helping Malaysia's war veterans and those who fought for independence, they should help surviving WWII veterans, some of whom till today have not been compensated for their services and sacrifice.

No single version of history

Yesterday, Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin announced that they would be embarking on a roadshow dubbed the 'Patriot Stage', which will involve historians, descendants of those killed in Bukit Kepong incident.

The roadshow was in reaction to Mohamad Sabu's speech in Tasek Gelugor, Penang on Aug 21 thatUtusan Malaysia had interpreted as an attempt to glorify the communist insurgency before Independence.

Mohamad Sabu (left) has defended his speech and states that his words have been grossly taken out of context, and Pakatan has also come to his defence.

Similarly, Nurul Izzah said this fracas clearly shows that the official version of history is not universally accepted.

“Indeed, it seems to be causing great unhappiness amongst many groups and communities, and has made the divisions in our society all the more bitter.

“There will always be conflicting views of Malaysia's history and it is clear that many grievances still linger on all sides.

“As the ruling party, Umno should be facilitating debate on these contentious issues with a view towards national reconciliation, to move on from the divisions of the past towards a shared future together,” she said.