KUALA LUMPUR: Lim Guan Eng’s use of Mandarin in an official Finance Ministry statement is an early step in Pakatan Harapan (PH), particularly DAP, challenging the existence of the Sedition Act.
Umno’s strategic communications unit said there were strong pushes from members of the PH government that the act be repealed.
As such, it said in a statement, Lim and DAP seem to be deliberately provoking a reaction by going against the Federal Constitution so as to challenge the validity of the Sedition Act.
Criticising the fact that Lim’s statement in Mandarin was labeled a “small mistake” by Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the unit said the matter should not be taken lightly as it was an early sign that DAP wanted to get rid of the rights of the pribumi by turning the country into a republic.
“Indirectly, this will also slowly lead to the end of the Malay Royal Institution. (DAP) will try to use their strength in PH to influence Tun Dr Mahathir to amend the Constitution and repeal certain acts.
“These include the Sedition Act, Anti-Fake News Act, Security Offences (Special Measures) Act and Prevention of Terrorism Act. Then there will be a liberal system in place in Malaysia, where lies, slander and seditious statements can be spread without any action being taken,” it said.
The Umno unit was commenting on the use of Mandarin by Lim in a statement released regarding the Tun Razak Exchange issue recently.
Several quarters had questioned the need for the Mandarin statement alongside the Bahasa Melayu and English statements. Under Article 152 of the Constitution, all government business and communications must be in Bahasa Melayu, though English is accepted as it is an international language.
“All mistakes ‘deliberately’ made by members of the Cabinet should be punished so it does not drag on and becomes a provocation which may threaten peace and harmony. Umno views the matter seriously and urges Dr Mahatir and his Cabinet to take a close look at such matters so as to ensure national harmony and is not repeated.
“Perhaps this issue was used by DAP merely to ‘test the market’. Without stern action from the prime minister, there is a worry that other ministries will also begin using Mandarin in official statements, especially those ministries led by DAP members,” the unit said.
Umno, however, noted that Dr Mahathir seemed to be more inclined to accept whatever DAP pushed for, especially when it came to the repeal of certain acts, the result of which would allow the party leadership to do whatever it pleased in order to further their political aims.
“Even the rights of the palace are being questioned now. This will only lead to the Malays becoming angry and the dissatisfaction of the palace. It was an insult to question the amount spent by on the needs of the palace, so much so that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong canceled his Hari Raya Aidilfitri open house.
“Yet, Dr Mahathir and the PH government did not care. To them, the Royal Institution is already dead and need not be bothered with,” it said.
The unit said what DAP was pushing for now was similar to a “neighbouring republic” which the party dreamed of modeling Malaysia after.
“Using the model of this neighbouring republic, DAP leaders are now greedily pushing through the party’s agenda, so much so that Dr Mahathir is now finding them difficult to control.”
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