Why did Ismail Sabri delete his FB post if he has done nothing wrong, asks DAP

DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang questions Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s move to delete his Facebook post calling on Malays to boycott Chinese businesses. – The Malaysian Insider pic, February 5, 2015.

Why did Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob delete his Facebook post urging Malays to boycott Chinese businesses that refused to lower their prices if he had not done anything wrong, asked DAP today.

DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang said the agriculture and agro-based industry minister insisted he had done nothing wrong and would not apologise.

"But if there is nothing wrong with his Facebook post calling on Malay consumers to boycott Chinese businesses, why has Ismail Sabri deleted the post from his Facebook?" he asked in a statement today.

In his posting, Ismail said that if the Malays boycotted Chinese businesses, they would have no choice but to lower their prices.

He also singled out the OldTown White Coffee chain owned by OldTown Bhd, saying that DAP MP Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham owned shares in the company, which Ngeh has denied.

"Malays are still refusing to boycott (OldTown White Coffee), what more when its owner is said to be the DAP Ngeh family of Perak who are known to be anti-Islam.

"As long as the Malays don't change, the Chinese will take the opportunity to oppress the Malays," Ismail had said.

His comments drew flak from the public while MCA, Gerakan and DAP members lodged police reports against him.

However, the Prime Minister's Department yesterday said the comments were "meant to rebuke traders who refuse to lower the price of goods" despite lower fuel price.

"The rebuke he made was targeted at all traders and not just traders from a particular race. Besides that, he suggested consumers use their purchasing power to force traders to reduce their price of goods," the statement said, adding that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had reaffirmed the government's commitment to protect the interests of all races.

Lim said Ismail was now basking in the glory of a new "hero" status after his explanation to his Cabinet colleagues that it was aimed at all profiteering traders had been accepted.

The DAP veteran reserved his vitriol for the two MCA ministers whom he said were earlier "breathing fire and brimstone" against Ismail's remarks, only to accept his explanation in yesterday's Cabinet meeting.

The Chinese party had previously slammed the minister for its racist remarks, with deputy president Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong and youth chief Chong Sin Woon among the most vocal.

"Nobody knows how the two MCA ministers could square the circle, but clearly they have acquired such superior art of political somersaults not understood by ordinary mortals, including ordinary politicians," Lim said referring to MCA president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai and his deputy Wee.

With the police probing Ismail's posting, the Gelang Patah MP said the same investigation should also be conducted on the Cabinet led by Najib to ascertain how they could transform Ismail's racist call into a general warning for all traders.

"Not only Malaysians, but the world would like to know how the Malaysian Cabinet achieved such a double miracle, firstly transforming a racist call to Malay consumers to boycott Chinese businesses into an all-embracing call covering all races in the country; and secondly, an even bigger miracle, to convert political leaders, like the two MCA ministers, who were absolutely convinced of the racist nature of Ismail’s Facebook post before the Cabinet meeting, into accepting that Ismail’s posting was not racist at all.

"Be that as it may, will the police also investigate Najib and all the other 34 ministers in the Cabinet as to how they had transformed a racist call into a non-racist call?" he asked.

- TMI