Ismail Sabri now tries to distance self from ‘Boycott Chinese Products’ Facebook page

 Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob insists that his message was a call to protect all races from profiteers, not just boycott Chinese business. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, February 7, 2015. 

Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said tonight he did not know whether a Facebook page calling for Malays to boycott products and businesses owned by Chinese was a positive step for Malaysia, but added that it was the right of consumers to snub any goods that they wished.

The page “Boikot Barangan Cina DAP ORI” (BBCDO) gained renewed attention after the agriculture and agro-based industry minister earlier this week urged Malays to boycott errant Chinese traders on his own Facebook.

The BBCDO page, which has more than 54,000 likes, provides lists of products and businesses allegedly owned by the Chinese, and urges Malays to boycott them in favour of goods produced by their own community.

When asked if he believed such a page was a positive step for the country, Ismail told reporters, “I don’t know.”

But he said he was not responsible for the page, adding that it was up to consumers to interpret his message however they wished.

“The person doing the boycott is the consumer. I only gave my advice on what should be done with consumer power. That’s all. The details, the goods they want to boycott, is not from me,” he told reporters after speaking at a forum titled “Profit by the middlemen: Legitimate or sabotage?”

“I just said, with the prices of goods rising, (consumers) cannot rely on the government alone to protect consumers’ interests. So the consumers use their own powers to take action, whether it is to boycott or whatever.”

But, when asked if he supported boycotts based on race, Ismail said no, adding that the focus should be on errant traders regardless of their ethnicity.

“No. I have already said it (boycotts) are for the benefit of everyone. Any errant trader, whether Malay, Chinese or Indian, cannot escape. My focus is on errant traders,” he said.

During the question-and-answer session forum in the evening, Ismail said that Barisan Nasional (BN) should be credited for reducing the price of petrol and goods, yet they gained no benefits from their efforts.

“I look at this politically. When the price of petrol and goods go up, the one who benefits is the opposition. When the price of petrol and goods go down, Barisan Nasional (BN) should get the benefit because we were the ones who lowered it.

“But we don’t get any benefits. In fact, we are condemned for failing to reduce the price. So the best option is to use consumer power,” said Ismail.

He urged the public to focus on the “intention” of his message for the boycott, which was to protect all races from profiteers.

Ismail said the prices of foodstuff were high due to the existence of profiteering middlemen, and that his ministry was trying to tackle this by eliminating farmers’ and fishermen’s reliance on them.

He said associations for farmers and fishermen had been formed to take over the middlemen’s task of selling produce to consumers, but added that progress was slow.

He said this was because many were too comfortable with relying on middlemen, and the ministry itself could not force them to turn to the associations.

Ismail said the ministry was also trying to help the fishermen and farmers take over the entire value chain through the associations.

“If this can be done, the products from the farmers or fishermen can go directly to the associations and straight to the consumers. Those who profit are the farmers and fishermen, and without any price manipulation, consumers will get their goods at a low price,” said Ismail.

The minister had courted controversy after he posted the remark on his Facebook page in relation to prices of goods that have not gone down despite the drop in petrol and diesel prices.

Ismail wrote in his posting that Malay consumers had a role in helping the government fight profiteers by using their collective power to lower the prices of goods.

The minister is also embroiled in an allegation he reportedly made against DAP MP Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham, whom he said had shares in the popular OldTown White Coffee chain owned by OldTown Bhd.

Ngeh said he would sue the minister for labelling him and his family anti-Islam, after Ismail failed to meet the 48-hour deadline he set to retract and apologise for the remarks.

“If he wants to take action that is his right and I am ready and I’ll see him in court,” Ismail told reporters tonight.

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak defended Ismail's Facebook comment, saying the Umno minister was not targeting any specific race.

The Prime Minister's Department in a statement said the Cabinet was told that Ismail's post was a reminder for all businesses to lower the price of their goods.

- TMI