Ibrahim Ali is doing the Barisan Nasional coalition a disservice with his May 13 remarks, says MCA vice-president Datuk Seri Chor Chee Heung. — File pic
Despite acknowledging Ibrahim’s claim to be pro-BN, leaders from the ruling pact were quick to distance themselves from the Perkasa chief, whose latest rhetoric included a threat that May 13 could repeat if the Chinese grew more powerful.
MCA vice-president Datuk Seri Chor Chee Heung said that instead of helping BN, Ibrahim was doing the pact a “disservice” by spewing more racially-charged remarks.
“Sometimes my friend Datuk Ibrahim Ali, he is just behind the times ... Totally living in the times far behind from the modern world,” he said when contacted here.
“His remarks send shivers down the spines of the Chinese community... he’s doing BN a disservice even though he said those things because he wants people to support BN,” the minister added.
“He needs to be careful in making these remarks ... the Prime Minister is bringing the 1Malaysia concept, the concept of unity ... these kind of remarks will make some citizens angry,” said MIC vice-president Datuk SK Devamany.
In a Sinar Harian interview on Friday, Ibrahim had said that the Chinese would become a national security threat if they grew more powerful economically and politically, and even warned that this could see May 13 repeated.
“Today, the Chinese are okay ... but it’s not enough ... they want more. Now, they control 40 per cent of the country’s economy, and now, they want political power as well.
“But what will happen in 25 years from now? Today is okay, but tomorrow, when their power spreads, then it will threaten national security and the May 13 incident will return,” he had warned in the article, which was published in verbatim.
But People’s Progressive Party (PPP) president Datuk Seri M. Kayveas rejected Ibrahim’s view, saying the Malay rights leader had gotten his history and concept of Malay empowerment post-May 13 wrong.
“He was blinded by some facts, he needs to look at it correctly,” Kayveas said, a sentiment shared by a politician across the divide — PKR vice-president Chua Tian Chang.
“Ibrahim has got the ‘tiga suku’ (crazy) notion of history ... Everybody knows that May 13 happened because of the split in Umno, it had nothing to do with the Chinese,” Chua said.
Chua was referring to a conspiracy theory which alleged that the incident was a ploy by Umno elites to topple the more moderate former Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman and further their Malay supremacy agenda.
“If we compare now and then, the Chinese made up 40 per cent of Malaysians, but only 20 per cent now. So how can Chinese be a threat?” Chua added.
“It’s just Ibrahim Ali’s idea of nightmare, an illusion,” claimed Salahuddin Ayub, PAS vice-president.
The political leaders also expressed confidence in the maturity Malaysians today , agreeing that every individual, especially Malays, have grown more progressive and would think far beyond Ibrahim’s mindset.
“In today’s modern Malaysia, Malays, all races, have different outlook now ... The citizens are more focused on governance not races,” offered Chor.
“Racial issues are no longer popular among the citizens, so the issues that we fight for are those that transcend races,” declared Salahuddin.
“(May 13) is just a bogeyman and ghost brought up by Umno which is trying to defend their last lifeline,” he added, defiantly.
“I am confident that May 13 will not repeat itself, especially with such strong religious values among Malays,” Chua said.
Kayveas meanwhile suggested that instead of being negative, Ibrahim and Perkasa would be better off encouraging Malays to blend and work together with other races in making Malaysia better.
“He should stop driving people away, scaring them by using violence as an excuse,” Kayveas said.
“If Ibrahim want to be a champion of rights, he should look at the Indians. They’re worse off compared to Malays.”
Ibrahim or “Tok Him” as he is often called, is known to have positioned himself as the firebrand for the Malay agenda and the face of Perkasa, the Malay right-wing group he had founded just after the 12th general election in 2008.
But his fiery rhetoric and often racially-charged remarks has landed him all too often on a collision course with non-Muslim politicians across the political divide, despite claims from the opposition that he has the backing of the ruling Umno.
During the Perkasa general assembly yesterday, the firebrand leader continued his tirade against the Chinese and also quoted from the book “World on Fire” by Amy Chua, which suggested that the free market breeds ethnic hatred and global instability.
He gave examples of violence in the Philippines, Indonesia and South Africa, where shops owned by economically-dominant races had been burnt down after the natives felt threatened
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