Umno will not demand its leader Tajuddin Abdul Rahman to apologise to the Chinese community for threatening to slap them, as the remark was uttered due to a miscommunication.

Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor told Sin Chew Daily today that Tajuddin was misled by social media and subsequently acted out in anger.

He explained that miscommunication might have caused the deputy agriculture and agro-based industry minister to think local Chinese had sought help from China, which ultimately led to his outburst.

The issue of Tajuddin having to apologise does not exist, as this was merely an issue caused by miscommunication, Tengku Adnan ( photo ) said in the daily's evening edition.

"I can understand his feelings. The same thing happened, when I initially misunderstood China’s ambassador (to Malaysia) Huang Huikang's remark, and I was very mad.

"Huang's remark was twisted by DAP leader Ronnie Liu. The envoy never mentioned Chinese Malaysian but citizens of China. The remark was twisted into a diplomatic row," he was quoted in the report.

Huang had visited Petaling Street on the eve of a planned controversial rally, which was aborted. During his walkabout, the envoy said China was against any form of terrorism, racism, and extremism.

'Don't fall into opposition's trap'

Tajuddin's comment came in the wake of a diplomatic row caused by the ambassador’s visit to the popular tourist attraction in Chinatown, Kuala Lumpur.

The Umno supreme council member told Chinese Malaysians yesterday to stop dreaming that a 'Godfather' from China would come to their aid.

He then issued a 'slap' warning to Chinese Malaysians who complained too much.

Tajuddin had declined to apologise to the Chinese community, denying he threatened to slap them, despite an audio recording proving otherwise.

"Let’s not fall into the trap of the opposition, particularly DAP. All must stop the debate; don't make this into a racial issue," the Umno secretary-general told the Chinese language daily.

Tengku Adnan, who is also BN secretary-general, confirmed that MCA president Liow Tiong Lai ( photo ) had called him yesterday over the matter.

Tengku Adnan, however, urged both MCA and Gerakan - which protested over Tajuddin's ' lempang ' remark - to calm down, be rational, and cease criticising Tajuddin.

Instead, he urged both parties to continue to defend the unity and harmony of the nation and demanded that all BN coalition members to stand together.

He advised them not to be influenced by social media, analyse the situation before making any statement, as this was how Tajuddin was misled and lost his cool.