By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal
May 10, 2011
The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, May 10 — Utusan Malaysia’s conspiracy of Christian groups plotting a takeover bid of the country is a “desperate” attempt by Umno to distract attention away from Barisan Nasional’s (BN) policy failures and economic mismanagement, Lim Guan Eng has said.
The DAP secretary-general charged that the latest conspiracy theory perpetrated by Umno was a way to shield the effect of the BN government’s announcements on a rise in petrol and sugar prices.
“The BN government’s announcement today that the price of sugar will be increased by 20 sen to RM2.30 a kilo has exposed the real malicious motive for Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia’s dangerous lies of a so-called conspiracy by DAP and Christian pastors to set up a Christian state and a Christian Malaysian Prime Minister.
“Such lies could be printed on the front page of Utusan Malaysia even though no Malaysian Christian had ever sought to be Malaysian Prime Minister,” said Lim in a statement today.
He said the establishment of a Christian state was unlikely as Christians only represent nine per cent of the country’s population.
The Federal Constitution does not expressly specify race or religious requirements for the position of prime minister.
Article 43(2)(a) of the constitution states only that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong shall appoint as PM a member of parliament who in his judgment is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the Dewan Rakyat.
Article 3(1) of the Federal Constitution does not position Islam as the official religion of the country.
It only states that “Islam is the religion of the Federation; but other religions may be practised in peace and harmony in any part of the Federation.”
The price increase of the said items, according to the DAP politician, was part and parcel of the government’s concerted subsidy cuts first announced on July 16 last year, when prices went up by five sen per litre for petrol and diesel, 10 sen per kg for LPG and 20 sen per kg for sugar. It also comes after the price of RON97 petrol was increased by 20 sen last week. “BN claims that despite the latest price increase in sugar, the government would save only RM116.6 million for development projects and still have to fork out RM283.4 million in subsidising sugar yearly. DAP rejects such arguments as not proven to be beneficial to the people,” he said.
The Penang Chief Minister said there was no point in saving RM116.6 million when corruption was still rampant and projects were not awarded on an open tender basis.
“Last week, the United Nations released a survey projecting a moderate slide in economic growth for Malaysia this year due to lack of political will in carrying out real reforms, rising food and fuel prices.
“Further, why be concerned about a mere savings of RM116.6 million when the BN government can save RM19 billion by ending gas subsidies to independent power producers (IPPs)?” Lim stressed and added that the only way to maximise saving taxpayers’ money was through ending gas subsidies for Independent Power Producers (IPPs).
“Instead of trying to save a miserable RM116.6 million, the BN government can save 163 times more, by as much as RM19 billion, by ending gas subsidies for IPPs. In the 2009 financial year, Petronas’s gas subsidy bill reached RM19 billion, while in the first half the 2010 financial year, the amount stood at RM10.2 billion.
“Cumulative subsidies borne by Petronas up till November 2010 since the gas price was fixed to the power sector in 1997 and the non-power sector in 2002 amounted to RM126.6 billion,” he said.
Lim accused Umno of taking the “easy way out” from explaining the price rises with a “dangerous lie” in which the Christian community is the scapegoat.
“By failing to punish and stop the Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia from continuing this campaign of lies that Islam is under threat, the BN government is making Christians an object of hate and inciting Muslims against the minority Christian community,” he added.
Utusan carried out a front-page article on Saturday claiming that the DAP was conspiring with Christian leaders to take over Putrajaya and abolish Islam as the country’s official religion.
The report, based on unsubstantiated blog postings by several pro-Umno bloggers, had charged the DAP with sedition for allegedly trying to change the country’s laws to allow a Christian prime minister, pointing to a grainy photograph showing what they described as a secret pact between the opposition party and pastors at a hotel in Penang on Wednesday.
The National Evangelical Christian Fellowship (NECF), together with partners Global Day of Prayer, Marketplace Penang and Penang Pastors Fellowship, said the claims against their community were lies, and has refuted the bloggers’ allegations.
Similarly, DAP leaders have denied the report and have accused Utusan of lying. They have also lodged police reports over the matter.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has called for calm and asked for the matter to be investigated first before drawing any conclusions.
#1 by guyramesh on Tuesday, 10 May 2011 - 11:48 am
Wakeup east-asian idiots
DONT FIGHT YOUR OWN/REGIONAL PEOPLE , BECAUSE OF FOREIGN/FARAWAY RELIGIONS!
Some far-east Asians (Chinese,Indian,Malays,Siamese,Philippines) who have embraced religions originating from Middle-East are fighting each other defending faith systems which came not from their own land, not from their ancestors and not even from their time.
In Malaysia, the Malays are over-zealously defensive of a foreign faith system. A religion founded NOT by any of the Malays alive now, not founded by even by any of their ancestors, not originating from their birth place or even from neighboring land or countries.
Worse still, the Malay Muslim claim finer knowledge on the rules of the foreign religion to the effect of introducing imaginative edicts and strict codes of conduct that may surprise even the founding race!
In Indonesia, Malays(Sunnah sect) kill Malays (Ahmadiyah sect) or another Malay (Christianity faith) One sect is originally from Arab, another sect from India , another religion from middle east too, but here in Indonesia the Malay race kills another Malay race over problems originally non-existing in their own race. Much of religious problems are still among the original founders in Middle-East.
In Philippines, natives of Muslim religion wage holy war against natives of christian religion. they forget that, before the invasion of faraway religions, there are of same Philippine or regional race,same culture,similar language but once faraway religions invades, they suddenly feel totally different from each other and justified to kill each other!!!
In Thailand, a Siamese race ,who embraced a faraway religion (Islam) are killing another Siamese race of another foreign religion (Buddhism) . Both religion not from Thailand but both people are of same Siamese or regional race! Why kill your own people for the sake of foreign faith system?
Stop being stupid, we east-asians must stop fighting each other over. Embrace the similarities , minus the religion all of us can love each other endlessly. With religion we can find so many reasons to fight each other. I am sad.
#2 by DAP man on Tuesday, 10 May 2011 - 11:55 am
UMNO is the Malaysian version of Zionist. The Christians here are being treated and bullied like the Palestinians in Israel.
Or how the whites treated the blacks in S. Africa and America OR how Hitler treated the Jews.
UMNO is heading in that same direction.
#3 by jus legitimum on Tuesday, 10 May 2011 - 12:29 pm
The latest display of arrogance by Utusan in reporting malicious lies only serves to show us the rotting regime under Umno cohorted by its lapdogs MCA/Gerakan/MIC.It is time to throw out all these scumbags.The sooner the better for the well being of the nation and everyone.
#4 by pulau_sibu on Tuesday, 10 May 2011 - 12:48 pm
Why the prime minister has to be from umno all the time? we can have taib as prime minister for instance. how do you know that taib is not as good as najib? we cannot stand the fact that bn will never let sarawakian to be the prime minister.
#5 by tak tahan on Tuesday, 10 May 2011 - 12:58 pm
We must throw out government who keeps fanning race n religious issues to its vested political interest.Any religion pratictioner who support this sickening regime is a real hyprocrite [deleted].Sickening hyprocrite with no conscience at all!These Sons/daughters of hyprocrites are who at the cause to keep umno ruling for over 54 years!