I refer to the letters by N Suhaila and Mr Know All regarding the continuing controversy over the 2003 sacking of the former editor-in-chief of the New Straits Times, Abdullah Ahmad.

In my opinion, the Saudi Arabian government should be manly enough to stand up and come forward to deny or admit that it pressured Umno president and Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to sack Abdullah Ahmad.

Also, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) should mount a public campaign to demand public accountability, clarification and explanation from Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, his deputy Najib Razak and the Saudi government on this matter.

This is because the independence of the Malaysian media and journalists must not be compromised by foreign interference and no Malaysian government leader should act like shadowy foreign lobbyist in our independent and sovereign country.

Otherwise, NUJ becomes irrelevant.