Dissatisfaction among PKR Youth members with the recently dropped wing’s central committee member Halimah Nasoha has led to apparent sexist insults hurled against her.
A screenshot of the PKR Youth WhatsApp group saw Selangor PKR Youth deputy chief Zainol Abidin Mohamed asking Halimah to “cover her breasts before challenging anyone”.
His remark was in response to a fellow PKR Youth member sharing a picture of Halimah clad in a sleeveless white shirt with her three friends.
The discussion on Halimah in the group started after she urged the party’s disciplinary board to call PKR deputy president Mohd Azmin Ali and renegade member Badrul Hisham Shaharin to end their open conflict as it undermined the party’s image.
Contacted later, Zainol admitted he made the remark and pointed out how the group had heatedly discussed Halimah's statement beforehand.
“You know how it is in WhatsApp groups. There are all kinds of things.
“I merely asked her to cover her aurat (modesty) first before she starts being a busybody reprimanding others," he told Malaysiakini.
“In the message, we mentioned how covering the aurat is compulsory," he added.
When asked, he said he had no idea as to who had leaked the WhatsApp conversation as there are more than 100 members in the group.
Despite using the colloquial Malay term for 'breasts', Zainol defended himself, saying his words were neither personal nor sexist.
“But my explanation is that I didn’t attack her personally or make any sexist remark," he stressed.
Responding to the WhatsApp group discussion, Halimah was quoted as saying by Selangor Post that she found the remarks “disgusting” .
“Coming from the leadership, it’s a disgusting statement. Personal attacks are humiliating,” she stressed.
Halimah was quoted in Sinar Harian today as saying that Badrul Hisham, also known as Chegubard, must provide proof of his allegations against Azmin who allegedly approved logging concessions to a company without an open tender system.
She added that Azmin can also drag Chegubard to court for allegedly slandering him, to see if the latter can provide any evidence to back his claims.
In a statement this morning, PKR Youth deputy chief Dr Afif Bahardin confirmed that Halimah had been dropped from the wing’s central committee, and therefore her statements do not represent the Youth wing.
Afif said Halimah was automatically dropped from the committee according to Item 7.14 of the wing’s standing order, which states that any PKR Youth committee member who fails to attend the wing’s leadership meetings for six times, without proper reasons, will be deemed as having resigned from the committee.
Admitting that she was dropped for being inactive, Halimah, however, questioned the timing of the move as she was sacked 24 hours after releasing the statement. -Mkini
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