Instead of continuing to take a hard line, MCA Youth chief Chong Sin Woon has decided to let the people judge Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s regret statement.

According to the senator, there are three levels of diplomatic language, namely apologise, sorry, and regret.  

“Since what he used was ‘regret’, we will let the people make their own judgment then,” he told Malaysiakini .

While Ismail’s clarification expressed his ‘regret’ that his statement urging a boycott had created tension between the races, the minister said he was not sorry for it.

“It is not regret with my statement, but regret that it created tension between races,” Ismail said.

According to The Star daily, MCA president Liow Tiong Lai has ‘taken note’ of Ismail’s statement and hoped the matter ‘is put to rest’.

When quizzed if this would make MCA be seen as weak and compromised, Chong replied: “No one told me this.”

Further pressed, he finally reiterated that, “Let the people judge themselves.”

When journalists continued to query if MCA Youth accepted Ismail’s regret statement, and would there be any further action, he, however, skirted around the questions and provided the same answers.

Ismail had courted flak over a Facebook posting in which he urged the Malays to shun Chinese traders who did not reduce the prices of goods.

Previously, Chong had taken a hard line on the issue, urging the agriculture and agro-based industries minister to apologise and resign for his statement.

A total of 165 MCA Youth divisions have also demanded that Ismail apologise and retract the statement, while 181 MCA divisions showed fully support for Chong, stressing that Chong’s stand represented that of MCA.