PETALING JAYA: Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah has come under renewed criticism about his remarks on political realignments, with DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang accusing him of “playing the racial card”.
Speaking to supporters of the Bersih 5 road convoy in his constituency of Gelang Patah, Lim expressed regret that Tengku Razaleigh had reduced Malaysian politics into an issue of Malay versus Chinese.
“It should be a battle between integrity, good governance and democracy versus corruption, bad governance and authoritarian rule,” Lim said.
His remark about Tengku Razaleigh was made in response to a Sinar Harian interview in which Tengku Razaleigh pointed out how the current political realignments of Malay-based political parties might seem to leave the DAP in a dominant position. However, he had disagreed that this would be the case.
Lim’s criticism of Tengku Razaleigh came in one paragraph in the midst of a speech which focused on the Bersih campaign for institutional reforms.
Tengku Razaleigh, who has often been championed by opposition politicians as an alternative prime minister because of his principled views, had noted in the Sinar Harian interview that Malay electoral support was split among five Malay-based parties. However Malaysian Chinese support was solidly behind the DAP. He noted that politicians might conclude that the current alignment could leave the DAP in a dominant position.
“Won’t this give DAP a chance to ‘bermaharajalela’ (do as they please) when the Malays are divided and the Chinese are united under DAP’s banners? Won’t it be easy for DAP to dominate us all, conquer us in the next general election?”
However, he did not think that would be the case.
“I don’t think it’s that easy. But I think it’s logical that some people think that way,” he was quoted as saying.
In an opinion piece today, philanthropist Koon Yew Yin attacked Tengku Razaleigh as making a cynical ploy for Umno, and demanded that Tengku Razaleigh retract his remarks.
Kit Siang’s speech today focused on the Bersih convoy, to highlight Bersih’s campaign for institutional reform. He described it as a “historic occasion for patriotic Malaysians regardless of race, religion, region or politics to reclaim the country from undemocratic, corrupt and opportunistic forces in the country which are prepared to see the country hurtle down the slippery slope towards a failed state provided they can achieve their selfish and greedy objectives.”
He also made reference to the campaign against 1Malaysia Development Berhad and regretted that Tengku Razaleigh had played the racial card in the midst of all the “corruption” woes.