I'm moderate, too, declares Ibrahim Ali
Ahmad Fadli KCPublished: Dec 12, 2014 12:00 PM | Updated: Dec 12, 2014 3:10 PM
Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali has insisted that he is a moderate Malay in the face of accusations that he is an extremist.
Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali has insisted that he is a moderate Malay in the face of accusations that he is an extremist.
He was responding to former Malaysian ambassador to the Netherlands Noor Farida Ariffin who criticised Perkasa and Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) and expressed concern that the country might go the way of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Ibrahim likened his "moderation" to the writings of The Star chief executive officer Wong Chun Wai whom he has threatened with a defamation suit.
"If he is a moderate, then he is a moderate. I am a moderate, too," he told a press conference in Kuala Lumpur today.
Wong in a commentary on Nov 2 in the daily had questioned why Ibrahim was not charged for threatening to burn bibles containing the word 'Allah'.
Despite Ibrahim's suit, Wong had said: “My stand remains the same. The moderates will continue to speak up.”
"Say no to extremism. If the case has to end up in court, then we will fight him on,” he added.
Ibrahim then railed on against Wong, complaining that the veteran newsman did not criticise Chinese educationist group Dong Zong or the opposition.
"It was the same with the 25 eminent Malays, why didn't they (the eminent Malays) criticise them (Dong Zong)?" he lamented.
Noor Farida, together with 24 other eminent Malays comprising former top civil servants, ambassadors and judges had on Dec 8 issued a statement expressing concern over the vitriol spewed by right wing groups.
They had urged moderate Malays to speak up, stating that the likes of Perkasa and Isma do not represent majority Malays.
Contacted later, Wong remained unfazed by the possibility of being hauled to court.
“I will see him in court then. No one should be allowed to stop the voice of moderation and reasoning. Malaysia will not accept extremism,” he said.
MCC has been hijacked
On a separate matter, Ibrahim distanced Perkasa from a planned rally by the Malay Consultative Council (MCC) at Bukit Jalil on Jan 10.
He lamented that the MCC, which was initially pioneered by Perkasa, had been "hijacked".
"We are not involved in the rally. The MCC was founded by me but someone else has hijacked it," he said.
Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim yesterday slammed MCC for using Islam to "defend racism".
Ibrahim today also announced that Perkasa would be holding its annual general assembly this Sunday.
However, the Perkasa chief said he is unsure whether the meet would discuss the government's sovereign wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) even though Perkasa's patron Dr Mahathir Mohamad had fiercely criticised it.
The Finance Ministry-owned 1MDB has been in the spotlight due to its RM38 billion debt as well as over-paying by the billions for the purchase of energy companies.
Ex-envoy urges moderate Malays to take stand
Heartened at ‘Eminent Malay’ Farida’s words
He was responding to former Malaysian ambassador to the Netherlands Noor Farida Ariffin who criticised Perkasa and Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) and expressed concern that the country might go the way of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Ibrahim likened his "moderation" to the writings of The Star chief executive officer Wong Chun Wai whom he has threatened with a defamation suit.
"If he is a moderate, then he is a moderate. I am a moderate, too," he told a press conference in Kuala Lumpur today.
Wong in a commentary on Nov 2 in the daily had questioned why Ibrahim was not charged for threatening to burn bibles containing the word 'Allah'.
Despite Ibrahim's suit, Wong had said: “My stand remains the same. The moderates will continue to speak up.”"Say no to extremism. If the case has to end up in court, then we will fight him on,” he added.
Ibrahim then railed on against Wong, complaining that the veteran newsman did not criticise Chinese educationist group Dong Zong or the opposition.
"It was the same with the 25 eminent Malays, why didn't they (the eminent Malays) criticise them (Dong Zong)?" he lamented.
Noor Farida, together with 24 other eminent Malays comprising former top civil servants, ambassadors and judges had on Dec 8 issued a statement expressing concern over the vitriol spewed by right wing groups.
They had urged moderate Malays to speak up, stating that the likes of Perkasa and Isma do not represent majority Malays.
Contacted later, Wong remained unfazed by the possibility of being hauled to court.
“I will see him in court then. No one should be allowed to stop the voice of moderation and reasoning. Malaysia will not accept extremism,” he said.
MCC has been hijacked
On a separate matter, Ibrahim distanced Perkasa from a planned rally by the Malay Consultative Council (MCC) at Bukit Jalil on Jan 10.
He lamented that the MCC, which was initially pioneered by Perkasa, had been "hijacked".
"We are not involved in the rally. The MCC was founded by me but someone else has hijacked it," he said.Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim yesterday slammed MCC for using Islam to "defend racism".
Ibrahim today also announced that Perkasa would be holding its annual general assembly this Sunday.
However, the Perkasa chief said he is unsure whether the meet would discuss the government's sovereign wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) even though Perkasa's patron Dr Mahathir Mohamad had fiercely criticised it.
The Finance Ministry-owned 1MDB has been in the spotlight due to its RM38 billion debt as well as over-paying by the billions for the purchase of energy companies.
Ex-envoy urges moderate Malays to take stand
Heartened at ‘Eminent Malay’ Farida’s words
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