Media blamed for 'women are like property' remark

Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Mansor today denied comparing women to housing property, claiming that he has been a victim of media spin.

“They (the reporters) don’t understand what I was trying to say, so you ask them lah. Why should I teach them? You people are graduates, you people are intelligent.

“But to me, if I clarify, you spin something else. Might as well that I keep quiet. If Wanita (MCA) feel offended, I can say sorry and I can apologise, but I didn’t mean what I had been spinned (to have said),” he said when asked to clarify his statement.

Tengku Adnan was met by reporters at the sidelines of the MCA annual general meeting where he was asked about his statement on Thursday.

In justifying the recent increase of the property assessment fees in Kuala Lumpur, he was reported to have said in his capacity as the federal territories minister: “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?”

Opposition women MPs and Wanita MCA have roundly condemned the statement as insensitive and demanded an apology.

When pressed today if he had said that a woman’s value would go up if she puts on make-up, he pointed to a female journalist, “No, no, you didn’t put on make-up but (you’re) so pretty.”
        
The minister insisted he respects women and referred to the fact that he has six daughters to back his claim.