I never said no to UEC recognition, says Dr M

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad today denied rejecting recognition of the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC), following the publication of an interview he had given to the Chinese press.

Some had taken the interview to mean that Mahathir was against recognising the UEC, which had been one of PH’s key election pledges.

“I’m always asked for interviews and I never reject, but sometimes the report that is published is not what I said,” he said in a press conference after chairing a Pakatan Harapan presidential council meeting at the Yayasan AlBukhary building here.

“On the UEC, I never said I rejected it. I just said there are sensitivities among the Malays about this matter, and we take into account everyone’s sensitivities, including those of the Chinese, Indians, Orang Asli and others.

“If we are not sensitive, we won’t get the people’s support. We must take the views of all races into account, not just one.”

Just because he had said the Malays were sensitive about the matter did not mean that others were not sensitive or that he was not being sensitive either, he added.

He said he hoped the media would report accurately, even though the government’s efforts to abolish the anti-fake news law had been unsuccessful.

Yesterday, Mahathir was reported as saying the government had to consider Malay sentiments and resolve the issue of unequal wealth distribution before recognising the UEC. - FMT