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Opalyn Mok
GEORGE TOWN (Sept 5, 2008): Bukit Bendera Umno division chief Datuk Ahmad Ismail today addressed the recent uproar over his alleged racist statement by again insisting he did no wrong and instead blamed a Sin Chew Daily reporter for inaccurate reporting of his speech delivered during a ceramah at the Permatang Pauh by-election campaign.
"I do not dispute the fact that I did say that the Chinese were merely 'menumpang di tanah air kita' (squatters in our land) but I was referring to the pre-Merdeka period when Malaya was under the British," he told a packed press conference at Menara Umno here. Ahmad reiterated confidently that he was not wrong as according to historical facts, it was undeniable that the Chinese were immigrants and squatting on our land during the pre-Merdeka period. "I did not create any racial issue. It is the reporter who manipulated my speech and he is the one with his own agenda," he said. Ahmad went on to attack the reporter for not being ethical and for intentionally creating a sensitive issue. "So the reporter is the one who is responsible in creating this racial issue. It is the reporter who is racist, not me," he said amidst cheers and calls from some Umno members present who shouted the words 'Suruh dia balik tong san' (Tell him to go back to China). When contacted for an immediate reaction, Sin Chew Daily editor-in-chief Pook Ah Lek told theSun that they stand by their report, and that it was an accurate coverage of what was said. He said the report was written by a senior journalist who received an in-house excellence award for reportage last year. The report churned up a furore among Barisan Nasional components MCA and Gerakan, and the DAP joined in as well, to slam Ahmad for his racist remarks. A number of police reports were also lodged, alleging an offence under the Sedition Act. Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak, who was reportedly present during Ahmad's controversial speech, had on Tuesday tendered a public apology on behalf of Umno for Ahmad's remarks, adding that it was not reflective of Umno's policy. Ahmad however said Sin Chew Jit Poh had manipulated his speech on Aug 24 and on Aug 25 he had given another ceramah at the Barisan Nasional Bukit Indera Muda Operations Centre and had given an explanation to rectify the issue. "Why didn't the reporter pick up and rectify the issue? This clearly showed that the reporter has his own agenda," he said. Continuing with his 'attack' on the reporter, Ahmad said he believed that the reporter was not a reporter who usually covers political issue but had taken over a friend's duty. "The question now is that surely the newspaper's editor checked the reporter's report. So, I hereby firmly state that I will not apologise over the mistakes made by the reporter. I am innocent and I challenge anyone who wants to disagree with me that the Chinese were 'squatters' in Malaya before Merdeka," he said. "I am firm with my statement. The reporter should be the one apologising, not only to the Chinese for deliberately creating a racial issue but he should also apologise to me, my family and all the Malays and Muslims in our country," he said. Reading out from a prepared 16-page speech, Ahmad also demanded for apologies from all Chinese leaders who had issued comments recklessly and blindly which further blew the whole issue out of proportion. "This includes the Chinese leaders within Barisan Nasional," he said.  | Datuk Ahmad Ismail pressing home a point during his press conference
to address the furore over a report of his alleged racist remarks. |
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Ahmad then went on to criticise Gerakan acting president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon for getting carried away and losing his judgement by releasing immature comments on the issue. "Koh has tried to shift the focus on his weaknesses by stating that this issue is the cause of Barisan Nasional's loss in Permatang Pauh," he said. "I challenge Koh to look at himself in the mirror and not to try to find a scapegoat and stop being so dramatic, which he is very good at. He should accept the reality that the Chinese no longer support him and Gerakan so he should not be looking for a scapegoat," he added. Ahmad also ticked off three Gerakan leaders from the Bukit Bendera division, whom he did not name, and told them to look ahead. "In this issue, they have made statements in the Chinese newspapers but we, Malays, have read the translations. We feel saddened and very angry that after 18 years we, the Malays, supported them, they dare to politicise this issue and it is clearly they who are trying to conduct a character assassination, together with several other Chinese leaders, of Malay leaders in Bukit Bendera," he said. "Or perhaps Koh and Gerakan has their own agenda of late and they are only looking for excuses and reasons to realise their agenda. What agenda? You think about it yourself," he added. Ahmad also said: "I wish to remind my leaders not to be too weak and extreme in trying to take care of the feelings of others until the feelings of Malays were hurt." He urged them to be strong, firm and not to follow in others' footsteps. In Penang, he said it is a reality that a majority of the Chinese community do not support Barisan Nasional, which was obvious when, in the March general election, Gerakan and MCA lost all the seats they contested in. "Don't forget that out of the 15 seats that Umno contested in, 11 seats were given full support by the Malays. Don't be too eager in taking care of the feelings of other races that we are seen to be weak to the point of hurting the feelings of Malays who had supported us all this while," he said. "Malay leaders must wake up and realise now that we have to unite to uphold the rights and pride of our race," he said. Later, when asked to respond to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's statement asking him to apologise, Ahmad said he respects and loves the Prime Minister. "With all due respect to Abdullah, as a BN leader I still have my own principles in certain areas so I will still stand by my statement in not apologising." As for the Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Abdul Razak's public apology on his behalf, Ahmad said it is Najib's right to apologise. Asked to respond to a statement by Koh in Kota Baru that Gerakan will review its position in BN if the component parties, especially Umno, fail to bring about change so as to restore people's confidence in the ruling coalition, Ahmad said if Koh and Gerakan wants to leave BN, they can do so. WHAT AHMAD SAID AT THE CERAMAH Earlier in his speech, Ahmad started off by stating that he is not a racist and that he has many Chinese and Indians who are not only in politics, sports or business but also in his daily life. "I am not going to be apologetic. I am not going to apologise as I did not owe any apology to anyone in this issue. I have done nothing wrong," he said. He claimed that he had been put on trial in the 'media court' where the media had found him guilty which is unfair and unprofessional for not getting any clarification from him while straightaway penalising him. "I am supposed to be 'innocent until proven guilty' but unfortunately, this did not happen. Worse still, there are some Chinese extremist who has branded myself as a racist. However, there are many Malays who considered me as a nationalist," he said. He admitted that he had chosen to be silent on the issue in the past week as he had wanted to assess the situation and the development that follows. "During that period, I was also in Bangkok, Thailand. But during that period, I have discussed with my friends and today, I am ready to give response to the issue. This enabled me to make a decision that is not too rushed or hasty unlike some Chinese leaders who had made baseless comments which reflects their immaturity and had helped fan this whole baseless issue," he said. He explained that his ceramah was held for a Malay and Muslim group. "As a less significant leader, I was trying to create awareness amongst those in my race and religion so it is not wrong for me to talk to them about the fight for Malays and Muslims as it is within Umno's constitution that we fight for Malays' and Muslims' rights," he said. He further read out what he had said in the ceramah which is a recounting of the history of Malaya during the time of the British rule. "I said Malaya belonged to our Malay ancestors. The Chinese were only squatting in Malaya at that time, and that due to the unfairness of the British at that time, the immigrant race had received education and more benefits earlier than Bumiputras," he said. He also said that in achieving Merdeka, the Malays had willingly allowed citizenship to the Chinese and this right was allowed the Chinese when the Chinese at that time agreed to Malay rights and supremacy which must not be disputed. "This is a social contract agreed by our leaders at that time. Citizenship rights were given to the Chinese as a package whereby the Chinese must accept and respect the rights of the Malays and Malay supremacy. "The Chinese can't just accept citizenship and later dispute the Malay rights and supremacy as this is breach of contract," he said. He also pointed out that if the Chinese wants to dispute the Malays rights and supremacy, then in the same context, the Malays also can dispute the rights of the Chinese's citizenship here. Several Umno leaders who were at the press conference, such as state Umno liaison committee deputy chairman Datuk Seri Abdul Rashid Abdullah and Opposition leader Datuk Azhar Ibrahim also voiced their support for Ahmad for his stand of not apologising. - The Sun
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