Jelutong MP Jeff Ooi, who was among those at the receiving end of Perkasa chief Ibrahim Ali's controversial ‘ holy war ' statement, challenged each member of the cabinet to make a stand on whether or not it is seditious.

Quoting excerpts from a Malaysiakini.TV recording of Ibrahim's fiery 45-minute speech at his ceramah in Gombak last month, Ooi was incredulous about why an unsubstantiated report run by Umno-owned Malay daily Utusan Malaysia - claiming a group of Christian leaders had prayed for a Christian state to be installed in Malaysia - sparked such a controversy.

"Because of a false report in Utusan Malaysia , without any supporting evidence, it has now become jihad (holy war)," he said in  in Parliament today.

jeff ooi lodge police report against utusan 080511 1 "I urge members of the cabinet, not just from Umno but also MCA, MIC to tepuk dada, tanya selera (to be honest with themselves). They merely denied that such a speech was seditious. Is this the fate of Malaysia?"

Ooi also slammed Home Minister Hishamuddin Hussein for simply brushing aside "extremists' views" as not reflective of the general view of Muslims in Malaysia, implying it was unfair of the minister to make a blanket generalisation.

"He (Hishammuddin) said extremists also exist among the Chinese, without specifying who he meant. Now, all Chinese have become suspects," Ooi said.

Deputy Home Minister Abu Seman Yusop, in responding to Ooi's speech, said it was not true that the government was dragging its feet on the issue as the ministry monitored statements by all parties, "including by members of the (ruling) administration".

"Every investigation by the police is based on reports and investigations will be carried out in detail. Action will be taken only if the act truly goes against the present laws and can affect national security and public order.

"Nobody is excluded from the law. In this case, I advise all, including all YBs, to be careful in issuing statements, especially those touching on sensitive issues that can impact national security and public order," Abu Seman said.

Call for jihad ‘illegal'

Earlier, Hishammuddin warned that anyone who called for jihad , which is deemed against the law, would face severe repercussions.

In response to a written question from Lim Lip Eng (DAP-Segambut) whether the use of the word jihad against a particular group to protect the sovereignty and dignity of Malays and Muslims was a serious offence, the minister said the government would take action based on the law.

"The government is serious and will take action on any individual who gives a statement to the print, electronic or alternative media that touches on unity, or is deemed racist and touches on the institution of monarchy, or religion, in the open.

"Action will only be taken if investigations reveal such action is against the law. Following this, I would like to ask all parties to be careful in making allegations on which the truth is not known," the minister said.