Sanusi stands by Tanah Melayu remarks, denies inciting division

 PN election director says he was merely reminding the public of the country's history and was not urging any community to return to their country of origin, as alleged.

Kedah menteri besar Sanusi Nor insisted that the PN administration in the state has consistently looked after the welfare of all communities.

SEREMBAN:

Kedah menteri besar Sanusi Nor has again defended his remarks on the history of Tanah Melayu, claiming they were distorted by certain parties to provoke anger and misunderstanding.

The Perikatan Nasional (PN) election director said he was merely reminding the public of the country’s history, and was not urging any community to return to their country of origin, as alleged.

“I’m puzzled that history cannot be accepted as a fact. Do I have to spell it out by saying Scots come from Scotland, Swedes from Sweden, and the Irish from Ireland?

“What I’m saying is that this land was inhabited by the Malays. It was called Tanah Melayu. Simple. Even that, people don’t understand?” he said during a ceramah here last night.

He said history should be studied to understand past events, assess the present and plan for the future, including appreciating the openness of earlier generations in accepting the country’s multiethnic society.

Sanusi also rejected claims that his remarks were racist, insisting that the PN administration in Kedah had consistently looked after the welfare of all communities.

“We’ve done many good things. It’s just that we don’t go around telling people about them.

“We help pondok schools, religious schools and Chinese schools whenever they need assistance. So how can they say we’re racist? That’s simply not true, ladies and gentlemen.”

He also said that those who had twisted his remarks were trying to stir hatred and confusion for political gain.

Sanusi stirred controversy by suggesting that different ethnic groups in Malaysia could fall back on ancestral homelands outside the country. In a campaign speech in Negeri Sembilan, he reportedly said that “the Chinese have China, the Indians have India, the Cambodians have Cambodia, and the Malays only have Malaysia”.

He denied that his remarks were intended to question the citizenship or rights of Malaysian Chinese and Indians.

Police said several reports were filed on the matter, and that Sanusi would be called to give his statement to assist investigations.

Sanusi threatened Dr N Sathia Prakash with a defamation suit over claims that the PKR leader had misrepresented his remarks about the Malay, Chinese and Indian communities during the ceramah. - FMT