BN MPs want travel ban on Anwar to stop his 'insults'

WHAT HAPPEN TO THE PHRASE: "MERE JUST ONE VOICE & UNIMPORTANT - NO ONE WILL LISTEN". THEN WHY TRAVEL BAN HIM UNLESS BN IS AFRAID OF THE TRUTH BEEN EXPOSED.

Anwar - well-respected in the overseas lecture circuit

KUALA LUMPUR - Two Barisan Nasional members of parliament, worried over Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim's reception abroad, are urging the government to stop him from travelling overseas.

“The government should rethink the approval given to those disgruntled individuals to travel overseas to prevent them from bad mouthing Malaysia,” UMNO's Jempol MP Lilah Yasin told the party's mouthpiece Utusan Malaysia.

Echoing him was Kinabatangan's Bung Moktar Radin, who hit out at Anwar for accusing the Malaysian government of being undemocratic.

“He is trying to equate himself with Myanmar democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, and this is not accurate because in that country, the leaders fighting against the government will be killed and jailed.

"In this country, as long as you have police permit, you can give talk everyday criticising the government,” he said.

Lilah, Bung

He suggested that the government enact a new act to prevent leaders like Anwar from "badmouthing" the government in other countries.

Several BN leaders had earlier hit out at Anwar for his recent comments to the Australian media, in which he said it was an insult to categorise Malaysia as an Islamic state.

Former prime minister Abdullah Badawi reacted by saying that the real insult was Anwar's remarks.

PAS leaders have however come to the defence of the Permatang Pauh MP, saying it was hilarious to see BN celebrating Western praises of the country as an Islamic state.

“Yes (it is an insult) because Malaysia is proud that the western world sees Malaysia as an Islamic state. It is hilarious,” said PAS vice president Mahfuz Omar.

PAS's Kuala Selangor MP Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, meanwhile, reminded that there were certain standards for a state to be called Islamic, among which were its practice of democracy, transparency, accountability and justice for all.

"It is truly an insult in the sense that you make a mockery of Islam (by calling Malaysia an Islamic state),” said Dzulkefly.