Zaid Ibrahim is spot-on...

...UMNO General Assembly speeches portend dangerous trends in the nation’s politics as they make nonsense of Najib’s 1Malaysia call, New Economic Model and proposal for a “Global Movement of Moderates”

Lim Kit Siang

Datuk Zaid Ibrahim is right and spot-on. Recent statements from UMNO leaders about the Opposition parties at the UMNO General Assembly are both regrettable and worrying.

They portend dangerous trends in the nation’s politics as they make nonsense of the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s 1Malaysia call, New Economic Model and his proposal for a “Global Movement of Moderates”.

Has Najib decided to cancel his initiative to launch “the Global Movement of the Moderates” in Kuala Lumpur with an inaugural International Conference of the Global Movement of Moderates from Jan 17 to 19 as his speeches and those of UMNO leaders at the UMNO General Assembly are completely antithetical to any acceptable definition or concept of “moderates” or “moderation”.

I challenge Najib to conduct a public opinion poll whether he is perceived by Malaysians as speaking for 1Malaysia and for all Malaysians, as well as whether he is speaking as a “moderate”, in his UMNO Presidential Address, or just for UMNO and in particular UMNOputras?

Or have an opinion poll whether Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy UMNO President, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yasin had not come across as an out-and-out extremist and racist in his speech to the joint general assemblies of UMNO Wanita, Pemuda and Putri – not only to Chinese, Indians, Kadazans and Ibrans or but also to thinking and enlightened Malays.

If the race-baiting and incitement of religious hatred and tensions by UMNO leaders and delegates at the UMNO General Assembly had taken place at Opposition conferences, the police and special branch would have already hauled up Opposition leaders and delegates for committing crimes of sedition and other offences. Why the immunity and impunity for UMNO leaders and delegates?

UMNO leaders, especially Najib and Muhyiddin, are guilty of the height of irresponsibility when they led other UMNO leaders in playing the 3R cards of race, religion and Malay rulers, for instance, falsely accusing the DAP of being anti-Malay, anti-Islam and anti-Malay rulers.

Thinking and patriotic Malaysians, whether Malays, Chinese, Indians, Kadazans or Ibans are concerned when UMNO leaders upped the ante after the UMNO General Assembly in escalating the exploitation of the 3R cards – as illustrated by Najib’s speech at the Perkida general assembly on Monday.

Are there no UMNO national leaders who are prepared to put nation before party and self and dare to step forward to draw the line to declare like Zaid Ibrahim that there should be an end to the irresponsible politics of playing the 3R cards of race, religion and Malay Rulers, especially when based on lies and falsehoods?