The people should stop blaming the authorities for banning the book by Canadian author Irshad Manji because it is the enforcement agency's job to ban books.

Saying this at a BN event in Wangsa Maju last night, Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports Razali Ibrahim said otherwise, the agencies "will not have work to do".

NONE Razali ( right in picture ) said: "The book goes against Islam and the Islamic Development Department (Jakim) says it cannot be sold.

"Let the enforcement agencies do their work, otherwise they wouldn't have any work to do."

The ban was inevitable as the book "contravened the law", he told the audience of about 300. Those who wanted to read the book should not quibble about the ban as the book 'Allah Liberty and Love' was available overseas and could be purchased from there.

Razali, who is also Umno Youth deputy chief, was relating his experience discussing the matter with "young professionals" who were unhappy with the ban on Manji's book.

"I asked them if they have read the book, they said no. I asked them if they wanted to read the book, and they said no. So why are they making a fuss?

"We waste time talking about things we don't even want but it's fun for us because we don't have anything else to do... it doesn't benefit the larger society," Razali, who is the MP for Muar, said.

He said the BN has proven that it can change and be more open, and this could be seen in its approach to the Internet.

"Part of the shift of support away from BN was caused by libel on the blogs, but BN doesn't shut down the blogs or the Internet.

"Instead, BN widens (Internet) coverage and upgrades the speed. It's illogical, isn't it?" he asked.

As such, Razali urged the rakyat to do their due diligence and check the veracity of the things they hear from either side of the divide.

"Don't believe everything. Like the Scorpene (submarine) case, if we hear the opposition it sounds real...but when we check, it's all lies.

"We stand by our speeches. You check them. We don't lie," he said.

'Sex, lies and videotape'

Razali in his speech also branded PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim a "failed leader", arguing that the latter was lying and always blaming others for his own failures.

"He ends up in a sex video and he says we're sex-crazed. In Indonesia and India, MPs resign for having watched pornography.

"In Malaysia, the person is 'acting' in the video and still he doesn't resign, he doesn't even own up," he said, in an obvious dig to a sex video allegedly involving Anwar and a Chinese woman.

The same video was also referred to by Umno Youth exco member Lokman Adam, who joked that the video showed that Anwar "oppresses ( tindas ) the Chinese".

"You don't believe me? Google the words 'Anwar scandal' and see who's 'oppressing' the Chinese," he said, playing on the Malay word for oppress which also means to 'press upon'.

Anwar has denied that he is the man in the video.

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