The DAP today criticised BN component parties for their hypocrisy in publicly criticising the Malay rights NGO Perkasa, but keeping silent and submissively supporting Umno's pro-Perkasa position in BN policy meetings.

"Umno's submission to Perkasa and Utusan Malaysia's open support shows the Perkasa mentality within BN and that 1Malaysia is an empty slogan to win votes," said the party's secretary-general Lim Guan Eng in a statement to the media.

He was referring to a news portal's report on Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor's reversal of his previous tough stand against Perkasa.

Tengku Adnan was reported as denying that he had said his BN colleagues had agreed to distance the coalition from Perkasa.

umno agm 2009 tengku adnan mansor pc 200309 02 "When we had a meeting with BN secretaries-general, we never talked even a little bit that we wanted to distance ourselves from anybody," Tengku Adnan ( right ) reportedly told the news portal.

Lim contends that Tengku Adnan himself had no choice but to support Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's statement at a seminar on Friday that Umno did not want to stir conflict with any non-government organisation (NGO) such as Perkasa."

"We don't want to be in conflict with any NGO. As far as Umno is concerned, Perkasa is like any other NGO. At times we can agree, at times we can't," said Najib to reporters at the 1Malaysia seminar.

The Penang CM believes that the conflicting statements only prove that Umno has been behind Perkasa all along.

What the Bagan parliamentarian found surprising however, is that this support and the Perkasa mentality is prevalent even amongst all component parties of the BN as revealed by Tengku Adnan in his interview with the news portal.

"Clearly all the BN component parties like MCA are just playing a big sandiwara opposing Perkasa outside, but when inside meetings, they keep silent and submissively support Umno's pro-Perkasa position," said Lim.

Perkasa mentality

This Perkasa mentality in the BN, he said, is dangerous as it has led to public and open denigration of Malaysians from minority groups, while those making the racist remarks from the majority escape unpunished.

lim guan eng pc on doctored pix and penang bridge 25th anniversary Lim ( right ) recounted how Najib's special officer Nasir Safar and several school principals and teachers who made racist remarks against Indians and Chinese were let off scot free.

"How can you reward good if you do not punish bad? Is the reason because of Perkasa's open support and demonstrations for the right of Nasir and the school principals to make such racist and extremist statements?" asked the chief minister.

Lim said that Malaysians can see for themselves that Perkasa is racist and extremist, when they not only do not condemn but openly support the school principals and Nasir.

More seriously, he believes that Umno and the BN's continuing support of Perkasa despite this is a dangerous precedent, that will have dire consequences if not nipped in the bud.

"BN may feel that this is just a political game to win votes and the next general election. There is but only one short step from dehumanising Malaysians by describing them as beggars, selling their bodies and even dogs to the final militant step practiced by those who preach the language of violence," warned Lim.