By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, July 6: Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) information chief Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah has described former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s call for Malays to vote only for Malay candidates at the next general election as ‘definitely irresponsible’.
According to a report by Free Malaysia Today (FMT), Abdul Karim said Dr Mahathir’s years of experience leading the country should have given him a deeper understanding of the complexities of Malaysia’s multi-ethnic and multi-religious society.
“Advising Malays to vote only for Malay candidates in elections is certainly not progressive and could lead to a divided Malaysia. Coming from Dr Mahathir, such remarks are definitely irresponsible.
“Extreme racial and religious politics should be avoided if we wish to see a harmonious, peaceful, prosperous, and progressive Malaysia,” he said to FMT.
Abdul Karim, who is also the Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry, and Performing Arts and Minister for Youth, Sports, and Entrepreneur Development in Sarawak, said political leaders should stop fuelling racial and religious extremism and instead emulate Sarawak’s model of unity.
He also stressed that the former prime minister should use his experience to rise above politics and be someone that all Malaysians could turn to for counsel.
On July 1, FMT reported that Dr Mahathir had posted on his Facebook page urging Malay voters to vote only for Malay candidates in upcoming elections, regardless of which political party they represent.
He described the loyalty of Malay voters should belong to only Malay candidates, and that if they voted for non-Malay parties, Malaysia would not remain as ‘Tanah Melayu’. — DayakDaily
