The red shirts protest dubbed "Kebangkitan Maruah Melayu" slated for Sept 16 may have branded itself as a Malay uprising but the rally appears to be in support of scandal plagued Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.
This is according to DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang ( photo ) who said: "The red shirts 'Kebangkitan Maruah Melayu' rally appeals only to Malays - but not all Malays as it is specifically targeted at Malays who support Najib."
He said this in contrast to the Bersih 4 protest on Aug 29 and 30 which demanded for good governance and clean elections without elements of race.
The protest had called for Najib's resignation over several scandals including the RM2.6 billion in his personal bank accounts.
"There was no worry whatsoever from any quarters whether the Bersih 4 overnight rally could result in a racial conflict, as the only concern was whether the police would fire tear gas and water cannons against the peaceful participants.
"All the talk distorting Bersih 4 into a racial affair, such as alleging that it was a Chinese show-of-force against Malay political power, were concocted by Umno propagandists and strategists from their air-conditioned offices after the holding of Bersih 4 rally.
"But it is completely different with the 'Kebangkitan Maruah Melayu' rally, which sparked fears of racial conflict from the very beginning of its racially-charged publicity campaign," said Lim.
Disservice to Sabah and Sarawak
Lim added that Najib's green light to allow Umno members to join the racially-charged rally is a disservice to the country including the federation's partner Sabah and Sarawak.
"Najib is a minority prime minister of Malaysia today because of the support of 33 BN in Sabah and Sarawak, as without the Sabah and Sarawak MPs, he will only have 101 parliamentary seats, or 11 seats short of a simple majority to form the government in Putrajaya.
"If these 33 BN MPs in Sabah and Sarawak are given an opportunity and dare to reflect the views of their constituents, they would say a categorical and unequivocal 'No' to the holding of a 'Kebangkitan Maruah Melayu' rally in KL next Wednesday.
"It will not only be racist and undermine the very basis of a plural Malaysian nation but detrimental to the legitimate aspirations of Sabah and Sarawak to have an equal place under the Malaysian sun," he said.
"Najib must prove that he is prime minister for all Malaysians and not just prime minister for an Umno faction in the country.
More news
Al Jazeera journo deported over Altantuya murder story
'PM does not know Altantuya', PMO repeats to Al Jazeera
MP: Vote down Budget if speaker disallows no-confidence motion
Kit Siang: Red shirts rally for pro-Najib Malays
Gov't to amended directive to prevent leak of secrets
PKR bitten many times, but still not shy
PAS in Pakatan 2.0 - back to square one
Pua: Why 1MDB more interested to have me removed?
Malacca Umno denies mobilising members for ‘red shirt’ rally
Expect two new coalitions, PKR-PAS and DAP-Amanah
