Maran MP Ismail Abd Muttalib has denied being racist over a parliamentary question submitted to the government, asking for justification for “recognising” citizens born after independence regardless of “skin colour”.
Speaking to Malaysiakini today, Ismail clarified that his question, which has courted backlash, was referring to foreigners who wish to apply for Malaysian citizenship.
The PAS lawmaker explained it was not his intention to prohibit Putrajaya from awarding citizenships to foreigners. Instead, he was merely asking for the government’s rationale.
“I don’t want to mention any specific countries… like if I say India for example, that would be racist. I only made a general statement,” he stated.
Ismail said that his concerns arose following a high influx of foreigners into the country.
“People are questioning why there are so many Rohingyas coming to our country. There are many others like the Arabs, Indians, Bangladeshis, Indonesians and Nepalese.
“Doesn’t matter where they are from, I was only asking because we do not want (our country) to be too lenient in awarding citizenships,” he said, adding that it would affect Malaysians and their job opportunities.
He also expressed disappointment that his intention was not conveyed in the written parliamentary question.
“If it’s too loose, for instance like in France, it’s chaotic as the rules are too lax for refugees.
“I want the situation (in Malaysia) to be under control.”
Asked if he was indicating that the existing application criteria to acquire citizenship in Malaysia are not stringent enough, Ismail merely said it should be tightened further.
Meanwhile, in an earlier parliamentary question dated Feb 15, Ismail asked why Chinese new villages were still being maintained and whether communism still exists in those places.
On this question, he told Malaysiakini today that he was seeking clarification based on his observation and for security purposes.
In a separate query submitted to Parliament, he also asked why a “state government” had issued a ban on all mosques in the state to lower the volume of the call for prayers (azan).
Harping on falsehood
He confirmed with Malaysiakini today that his question was indeed referring to DAP-led Penang, which since 2011 has dealt with misinformation on the matter.
The ban is on the use of loudspeakers for the recital of Quranic verses before dawn prayers, not on the call to prayers - and had received support from PAS at the time.
However, he refused to comment further, briefly saying “many others have commented" on the matter.
His questions had received brickbats from other lawmakers including DAP leader P Ramasamy - who said Ismail could be charged under the Sedition Act for his “incendiary” questions.
Selangor exco Ng Sze Han also chided Ismail for his narrow-minded take on new villages. - Mkini
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