The Merdeka Times owner Firdaus Wong Wai Hung will be questioned by the police next week over a TikTok video, which featured a statement by academic Teo Kok Seong that was deemed to be a “racist hate speech”.
"I will cooperate with the police as the owner of The Merdeka Times which reported Teo’s statement and resulted in (Seputeh MP) Teresa Kok labelling it as incitement and racist.
"The Merdeka Times and I will defend Teo’s statement, which is factual. Chinese Muslims are defending non-Muslim Chinese. Where is the racism?” Firdaus (above) was cited as saying in the report.
He expressed disappointment that a majority of the Malay politicians have yet to come forth to defend Teo.
“An academic (Teo) has come forward to defend the Federal Constitution and Rukun Negara but the Malay Muslim politicians are afraid to defend it?
“Why? Are they afraid of losing votes and their seats?” he questioned.
In a TikTok video posted by The Merdeka Times on Feb 29, Teo claimed that vernacular schools could prevent national unity as Chinese students who were less intelligent could only master the Mandarin language, preventing communication with other races.
The principal fellow of the National Professors Council also alleged that Chinese-educated individuals look down on and disparage the Malays.
Call for probe
On Monday (March 4), Kok urged the police to investigate Teo for alleging that Chinese schools propagate racism against Malays.
Debating the royal address in the Dewan Rakyat, Kok condemned Teo’s statement, saying it was “certainly twisting facts and distorting the relationship between the Malay community and the Chinese community”.
The following day, Teo doubled down on his claims and said Kok was in “denial” over the realities among the Chinese Malaysian community.
“I did not say anything wrong. Everything that I had said is correct. It is the reality of conversations among the Chinese community,” the former principal fellow with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Institute for Ethnic Studies told Malaysiakini.
In a statement on Wednesday (March 6), Kok slammed Teo’s insistence that Chinese schools propagate racism against Malays and called it a "racist hate speech" that could cause division between communities.
The DAP leader said Teo's remarks were a disservice to the principles of unity and inclusivity which should be upheld in the society.
"Teo's assertion that Chinese-educated individuals look down on and disparage Malays is not only untrue but also mischievous. Such statements only serve to perpetuate stereotypes and deepen rifts in our multicultural society.
"It is important to recognise that the vast majority of Chinese-educated individuals do not harbour such sentiments and actively contribute to a harmonious society," Kok said. - Mkini
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