Cheras Umno division chief Syed Ali Alhabshee has debunked claims that Umno leaders dressed too extravagantly to separate themselves from the ordinary Malays.

                    

Contrary to people's beliefs, Syed Ali ( right ) said he and a few leaders only wore cheap "kain songket" made in Pakistan at the 20th anniversary celebration of the Umno division.

The cloth was even sponsored and needed no more than RM60 for tailoring, he emphasised.

Syed Ali said this is far from the RM5,000 to RM30,000 a piece that former information minister Zainuddin Maidin, better known as Zam, had accused them of spending.

"How many of us only wore embroidery that night? Not all wore songket. And why could he (Zam)  not distinguish between the expensive embroidered songket and the cheap one?

"The songket we wore that evening was only from Pakistan," Syed Ali told Malaysiakini over the phone.

Zam, the former editor of Umno-owned newspaper Utusan Malaysia , had written in his blog that the Malay leaders were displaying feudalistic power by donning the attire of warriors.

Syed Ali also said he did not understand Zam's ( left ) complaints at all, as the Umno Cheras division only celebrated its anniversary every five years and the event did not use any public money.

He added that the Cheras division had in fact raised a total of RM500,000 in contributions from the audience.

This money would go to the good cause of helping needy single mothers and orphans in the month of Ramadhan.

"For me, I do not use any public money, so no need to count.

"He (Zam) was a minister, he is the one who lived off public money before," Syed Ali added.

Songket war continues, Zam weaves a retort