We waste too much time on stupid issues, says KJ

After an uproar over roof features that resemble a cross in Langkawi, Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar laments that Malaysians spend too much time on “stupid issues”.

He said this in a Twitter post today, alongside a photo of him posing outside the terrace houses at the heart of the controversy.

“(It is) now repainted after the uproar. We waste too much time on stupid issues,” he said, while noting that the houses have been repainted.

Based on the photo, the vertical section of the “cross” appears to have been painted brown to match the colour of the roof tiles, leaving only a white section that used to form the cross’ “crossbar”.

Last week, photos of the newly built houses near Taman Sri Langkawi and Kampung Bakau, Langkawi, had gone viral.

When seen from the sea, white features along the brown-tiled roofs create the impression of a row of sea-facing white crosses.

This caused some Muslims to express distaste, while others view it as a harmless coincidence.

Kedah Housing Committee chairperson Tajul Urus Mat Zain had said that a meeting was to be held yesterday with the housing developer on the issue.

“I ordered my officers to check on the housing project after pictures of the houses went viral.

“If the crosses are very obvious, my advice to the developer is to re-paint the features,” The Star Online quoted him as saying on Monday. -Mkini