Umno leaders use football analogies to tackle Takiyuddin on 'emergency goalpost'

 

Umno leaders have resorted to football analogies to criticise de facto Law Minister Takiyuddin Hassan after he insisted the government had not shifted the goalpost on the state of emergency which is due to expire in August.

This was over the perception that the government was not committed to the August timeline and may seek an extension.

Umno supreme council member Ahmad Shabery Cheek (above) noted that the Perikatan Nasional government previously set up an independent panel to advise the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on whether there was a need to extend the emergency. 

However, he said Takiyuddin is now saying that it is the government that will advise the ruler on the emergency. 

Shabery likened this to the use of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), a relatively recent development in the football industry where the determination of fouls is assisted by video technology compared to the traditional method of relying on a human referee's eyesight.

"When the game is ongoing, don't change the rules.

"Last time, they agreed to use VAR but when the VAR does not favour their team, they decided to change to 'tengok mata sendiri' (relying on one's own eyesight)," he said.

Shabery questioned if the goalpost will be further shifted in the near future.

"Not only will the referee be confused, (but) the audience will (also) collapse," he said on Facebook.

Takiyuddin had defended his statement, stating that he was merely "correcting" the rules so as to guide the "referee".

Takiyuddin did not mention who he meant by "referee" but it appeared to be a reference to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. 

Following the criticism, he also stressed that the government "fully recognised" the role of the independent committee which is advising the ruler on the emergency. 

De facto Law Minister Takiyuddin Hassan

Meanwhile, Dewan Rakyat deputy speaker Azalina Othman Said, responding to Takiyuddin, said it was inappropriate that the government was trying to "win" at all cost.

"Everyone plays to win. But to win at all cost regardless of existing rules is unethical.

"By changing the rules in the middle of a game, you create another game.

"This makes the referee look bad," Azalina said on Twitter. She is also Umno's Pengerang MP.

In an immediate response, Takiyuddin said the government was merely adapting to the situation.

"True, to win at all cost regardless of rules is unethical. But not changing the rules when the circumstances and dynamics have changed is foolhardy and unjust.

"A good referee conceives quickly, but judges slowly after referring to the accurate rules," he said. - Mkini