Umno deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin dismissed Wanita chief Shahrizat Abdul Jalil's remark yesterday that the racial clashes of May 13 might be repeated if Umno is weak, but warned today that &ldquo;chaos&rdquo; will be imminent under Pakatan Rakyat rule.


 &ldquo;I did not mention that. Nobody mentioned about May 13. What we meant was that the situation will be chaotic (
 
 porak peranda
 
 ) because those parties (under Pakatan) have huge clashes in ideology...


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 &ldquo;The people can imagine... how would they agree on the future direction of the nation in the coming five years, if they rule the nation?&rdquo; Muhyiddin said when questioned during a press conference at Umno general assembly today.


 The question was whether the ideological differences between component parties in Pakatan would lead to a repeat of the infamous racial riots of 1969.


 The deputy prime minister pointed out that ideological clashes were evident in the states governed by the opposition coalition.


 &ldquo;Therefore, the reminder by BN and BN leaders on this is not to intimidate, but clearly we cannot gamble and risk our future simply because we want to try. This is not the question of our future, but the future of our children,&rdquo; he added.


 Yesterday, Shahrizat made the
 <a href="http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/215323" target="_blank">
 
 controversial remar
 
 </a>
 k during her opening speech to the Wanita Umno general assembly, warning that the May 13 tragedy might be repeated should Umno became weak and not be able to overcome its challenges.


 Muhyiddin, who is known for his conservative right-wing inclination, also agreed that the country would be unstable should Umno lose its grip on Putrajaya.


 <img align="right" alt="NONE" height="220" src="http://mk-cdn.mkini.net/550/ed6501cef320a55bc3bc7209549771fe.jpg" width="326"/>
 &ldquo;If you look at the profile of our nation, Malays and bumiputeras control more than 60 percent. That's the reality.


 &ldquo;Imagine if they cannot have an appropriate place from a constitutional angle in the general election, how would the situation be? More so if other groups were to govern the nation,&rdquo; he said.


 Muhyiddin added that BN has given sufficient attention to Malays and the bumiputeras while being fair to other races.


 It is expected that Shahrizat's remark will anger non-Malay voters and subsequently, put BN component parties in a difficult situation.


 <img align="left" alt="koh tsu koon gerakan agm 2011 story" height="273" src="http://mk-cdn.mkini.net/404/28d368787f585560c3e5c744be83bc28.jpg" width="200"/>
 Gerakan president Koh Tsu Koon (
 
 left
 
 ), when asked about it after attending the general assembly opening ceremony, chose to give a brief reply.


 &ldquo;No, I don&rsquo;t agree with that kind of statement. I don&rsquo;t think it will be like that,&rdquo; he said before leaving the venue in a rush.


 MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek left the Putra World Trade Centre without talking to reporters.


 Other Umno leaders seemed to distance themselves from Shahrizat's remark.


 Supreme council member Muhkriz Mahathir said Umno has successfully avoided the tragedy from being repeated by implementing new policies after the incident.


 &ldquo;I think, whether we agree (with Shahrizat's remark) or not, we have to prevent that from happening,&rdquo; said the deputy minister.


 Information, Communications and Culture Minister Rais Yatim said there should not be any fear that the racial riots would happen again because there were sufficient laws to enable the police to maintain order.


 <img align="right" alt="NONE" height="286" src="http://mk-cdn.mkini.net/231/a5e425daa9b591cd9a96e983c2117228.jpg" width="260"/>
 &ldquo;Therefore, we are not afraid of May 13, 1969, to come back. It has passed,&rdquo; Rais said


 However, Umno vice-president Hishammuddin Hussein (
 
 right
 
 ) dismissed the attention brought by Shahrizat's May 13 remark in her speech as a case of "spinning".


 "Shahrizat has already told me that this will be another matter that will be used for spinning by certain quarters, just because it coincides with the general assembly," he said.


 Like the other issues that had coincided with the general assembly, Hishammuddin said, these were all attempts to sidetrack the Umno gathering.


 
 
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 UPDATED 3.17PM

He questions how Pakatan plans to rule the nation when its member parties always differ over ideologies.

Muhyiddin dismisses May 13 remark, but warns of chaos

~RM12

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