by Jeswan Kaur
May 14, 2011 | Free Malaysia Today

COMMENT: ‘Rakyat diutamakan’ or people first tagline parroted by current prime minister Najib Razak is an out and out lie.

If the people are indeed Najib’s priority, he would stop discriminating one race from the other.

The Umno-owned Malay daily, Utusan Malaysia has once again stirred the hornet’s nest through its May 7 article alluding that Christianity would soon oust Islam as the official religion of this country.

Needless to say the report, which Utusan lifted from postings by bloggers, heated up the already tense racial-relationship between Malaysians of different faiths.

And what does Prime Minister Najib do? He continues playing politics, asking the Malays to give their undivided loyalty to Umno so that the party is able to continue its lordship over Malaysia.

That done, he demands a pledge from local leaders of Christianity that they will respect Islam as Malaysia’s official religion.

The leaders were also made to give an undertaking that they will never challenge the provision enshrined in the Federal Constitution.

Why did Najib pressure the leaders to give their pledge when Christians have never been disrespectful towards Muslims and Islam?

No respect

If all that was not enough to mislead the rakyat, Najib also made the Christian leaders give their word – that they will nurture peace and harmony between the various faiths to ensure peace and prosperity never deserted the country.

Such a cowardly act and one that can only come from premier Najib.

Najib has failed the rakyat many times and this May 7 Utusan Malaysia episode takes the cake.

Letting Utusan Malaysia off the hook with a mere warning is evident that Najib refuses to respect the sentiments of the non-Malays, in this respect the Christians.

Why has the Home Ministry stopped short of revoking Utusan Malaysia’s publication permit, for this is not the first time this Malay daily has gone to town with its dubious and slanderous article?

Obviously, as Utusan Malaysia is Umno’s propaganda mouthpiece, the government i.e. Najib will albeit shamelessly be biased towards this newspaper.

But for how long?

Najib’s folly

The idea that pressuring Christian leaders to profess their undivided respect to Islam is going to help appease the Malays is Najib’s folly.

The non-Malays have never deliberately disrespected Islam even when the churches and the Sikh gurdawara or temple were vandalised.

The Hindus were hurt beyond measure when a group of unhappy Muslims severed the head of a cow and stomped on in a show of anger.

The Muslims know the cow is regarded as a sacred animal by Hindus but still…

And just what did Najib’s government do?

The Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein had no qualms siding with the Muslims who stomped on the head of cow.

Where was Hishammuddin’s objectivity then as a Minister in restoring calm?

Is Hishammuddin like deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin telling the rakyat that he is a Muslim first and then the Home Minister?

Perhaps Hishammuddin and Muhyiddin can ask Najib’s extravagant think-tank Apco for some advice on how to refrain from displaying their racist streak to the very people who voted them in place.

Or perhaps they can take a cue from the leaders of Christianity who in spite of such tribulations, carried themselves with great emotional maturity, putting premier Najib to shame over his unwillingness to punish the real culprit behind the ‘oust Islam’ drama.

Never ending lies

Najib, who is president of ruling party Umno, is already busy galvanising party members to stay loyal to Umno, which as reality goes, has long deviated from its true purpose of uniting the Malays.

As always, making fraudulent claims has come easy to Najib. This time it was the claim that Umno still retained its “high quality brand” among the voters due to its superb track record.

High quality brand? Superb track record? Who is Najib trying to fool?

As far as memory serves the non-Malays, they will always remember the many threats Umno leaders have made and keep making in safeguarding Malay privileges, in particular the episodes concerning the Malay dagger called ‘keris’.

The manner in which Najib and Hishammuddin dealt with the Utusan Malaysia article defaming Christianity hardly point to any superb track record.

Cousins Najib and Hishammuddin have closed an eye to Utusan’s bigotry and instead decided that is the bloggers who must be punished.

Does this newspaper enjoy immunity, the kind that has left it swollen headed and highly irresponsible?

When the country’s racial ties are far from harmonious, there is no room for arrogance for Umno to bask in.

To get the police to issue traffic summonses to cars parked along Jalan Bukit Nanas in Kuala Lumpur by patrons attending mass at the St.John’s Cathedral church reflects Umno’s disinterest in ensuring relationship between people of different races in the country flourishes.

Pathetic revenge

By the way, was the move to issue traffic summonses a way of punishing the church leadears for making police reports against Utusan Malaysia’s racist and sleazy reporting?

If it was, what a pathetic way to seek revenge. What happens when the Muslims in their rush to attend the obligatory Friday prayer park their cars haphazardly, causing great inconvenience to other road users?

Why is there no police in sight to issue the mosque goers summonses for illegal parking?.

Why this double standard, premier Najib?

And you keep claiming that rakyat diutamakan.

The truth as the people know is otherwise, is it not?