Tourism Minister Dr Ng Yen Yen said that her feelings were not hurt by jeers received when speaking during a Chap Goh Meh event in Malacca on Sunday.

"No, I'm not hurt. You (the media) are making a mountain out of a small hill," she said when met at a function in Petaling Jaya today.

ng yen yen 270213 03 She said that out of the 10,000-strong audience, only a handful of people had shouted “No” when she was trying to elicit a “Yes”.

"There were 10,000 people. If, only 10 said 'No', what is there to worry?" she said.

Given the size of the crowd, she did not expect everyone to be on her side.

"I don't expect 10,000 to support me. We are (living in a) very democratic and open society. I didn't take it to heart.

"I would be very naïve to expect 10,000 to say 'Yes'. It doesn't affect me at all," she said.

When told that the video clip of the incident did not support her estimate, Ng argued that the clip only recorded the voices from a section of the crowd.

May try something different next time

Asked if she would continue to use the same style of speaking in future events, Ng said politicians continously evolve their techniques and speak from the heart.

Ng, was was not keen to speak at lenght on the incident, said that she was "very happy" during the event and that she had help boost Malacca's tourism industry.

She said that she had she had brought RM100 million worth of investments to Malacca and also played a part in bringing famous Chinese director Zhang Yi Mou to film a movie there.

"Why focus on this? Go look for bigger issues," she said.

Meanwhile, Ng refused comment and hushed reporters when asked whether she would defend her seat in the Raub parliamentary constituency.

"Don't worry about me. I'm okay," she said.

There are doubts about whether she will be fielded in Raub because of her apparent lack of concern over local dissatisfaction on alleged health hazards stemming from the Raub goldmine.