700 turn up for pro-Malay rally in KL

 Perkasa chief Syed Hassan Syed Ali says the gathering is a ‘manifestation of Malay disappointment’.

Participants at Himpunan Melayu Berdaulat held near Sogo in Kuala Lumpur today.

KUALA LUMPUR:

 More than 700 people took part in Himpunan Melayu Berdaulat, a pro-Malay rally, near the Sogo shopping complex today to voice their dissatisfaction with the government’s alleged shortcomings on issues affecting the community’s livelihood.

The gathering, organised by a coalition of Malay NGOs with the participants wearing white, proceeded without incident.

Syed Hassan Syed Ali, who heads Malay rights group Perkasa, said the gathering was a “manifestation of Malay disappointment” over issues affecting the community since the unity government was formed more than two years ago.

Among the alleged grievances is the purported non-Malay dominance in government agencies and development projects, resulting in Malay land owners being “oppressed”.

“We see these issues cropping up since the Madani administration was formed in 2022. We are worried about where we are heading, especially when it comes to Malay and Islamic interests,” he said when met during the rally.

PAS’s Razman Zakaria said the gathering was held to raise awareness among the Malays of their rights.

“We want to inculcate this in the Malays, that our job is to elect honest leaders who will defend our rights,” he said.

The rally, which began at 2.30pm and lasted for about 90 minutes, was also attended by PAS vice-president Idris Ahmad and Pejuang information chief Rafique Rashid Ali.

Dang Wangi police chief Sulizmie Affendy Sulaiman estimated the crowd to be between 700 and 800 people.

Syed Hassan previously said that more than 700 NGOs had confirmed their participation in the rally and that up to 20,000 participants had been expected. - FMT