MCA to Ku Nan: Apologise for 'women like property' label

Outgoing MCA Wanita chief Yu Chok Tow is demanding Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor apologise for his off-colour remarks comparing women with property.

When asked at the sidelines of the MCA Wanita annual general meeting to comment on his statement yesterday, Yu (left) said Tengku Adnan’s statement was superficial and belittles women.

“These superficial views are too belittling of women. A woman’s value lies in her substance, being cultivated, talent, and ability, not makeup.

“We want him to correct his statements. We believe all women would oppose them.

“We, women, are not products nor property. Such comparisons are inappropriate,” she told reporters.

Tengku Adnan, in his capacity as the federal territories minister, had yesterday compared women to property in justifying the varying assessment rate hike for Kuala Lumpur properties.

“If you enhance your property, it is the same as women. If you don't wear make-up, the price is cheaper, right?

“If you wear make-up, it is pricier. Isn't it the same?” he said.

Earlier in her policy speech this morning, Tow had pointed to Malaysia’s ‘dismal performance’ in the World Bank’s Global Gender Equality Report.

In the 2013 edition of the annual report, Malaysia ranks 102 out of 136 on the Gender Gap Index.

Yu said that while the gender gap is almost non-existent in Malaysia in the areas of education and health, the nation has performed poorly in the other two areas measured in the report, namely political and economic participation.

“In particular, Malaysian women grossly lack opportunities and participation in political empowerment. As a result, Malaysia’s ranking in these two categories are even lower than that of India, Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Bangladesh and some countries in Africa, Middle East and Eastern Europe, which we consider as less developed than us.

“In fact, we are also ranked behind Brunei, Thailand, Singapore, and China. As we can see, it is imperative for the government to double its efforts to improve, uplift and empower women’s overall political and economic participation,” she said.