Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng today expressed his frustrations at being wrongly accused for all the ills affecting the Malay community in the state, just because he is not a Muslim.

NONELim, who is also DAP secretary-general, lamented that he had been blamed for many incidents that have nothing to do with him or the Pakatan Rakyat government of Penang.

He listed several issues, such as being accused of interfering in the state Fatwa Council decision to ban the use of loudspeakers for the recital of Quranic verses before the dawn prayer.

He reminded reporters that he had earlier been blamed for taking part in a cow slaughtering ceremony, which is exclusive only to Muslims during Hari Raya Haji.

"Because I am a non-Muslim, it is easy to insult, beat, slap and chase me around," Lim lamented at a press conference in Penang today.

"I am blamed for everything, this is a very dangerous and racist political game played by Barisan Nasional," he added.

Lim said this when asked to respond to the recent comment by Penang mufti Hassan Ahmad that the state government was not involved in the Fatwa Council's decision on the loudspeaker ban.

Hassan admitted that there was no pressure from any quarter, whether from the state government, any organisation or any individual regarding the matter.

'I will face challenges by being patient'

Criticisms against the council for reportedly coming to an abrupt decision on the matter, he said, were "unprofessional and thoughtless".

Hassan was referring to a Berita Harian report that the state Fatwa Council should have consulted muftis from other states before making such a decision.

Penang's decision, however, received support from Kelantan Menteri Besar Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, the Perlis mufti and from PAS Youth.

Lim also said he would face the various challenges from his detractors by being "patient', a virtue he had learned from Muslim friends in PAS.

He said one should be 'patient and pray' for God to reveal the truth and shine His light for all to see.

It was because of the dirty political games played by the BN, Lim said, that the state DAP office had been smeared with orange and red paint.

"We are not blaming anyone for directly doing it (splashing the paint) but we have reasons to believe that it is all related," he added.