Besieged Rural and Regional Development Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob has defended his ‘Low Yat 2' idea, stressing it has nothing to do with racism, let alone the Low Yat fracas that took place last month.

The new complex, which will be located on the third floor of the Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara) headquarters, will not be named ‘Low Yat 2', he explained. Instead, the purpose of mentioning ‘Low Yat’ was for people to visualise it.

“If I just mentioned we want to open a telecommunications place for entrepreneurs, they cannot visualise.

“The purpose of mentioning Low Yat is for them to visualise what we are going to do.

“So, that has nothing to do with racism or what... it has nothing to do with the Low Yat fracas case or whatever,” Ismail told Malaysiakini when contacted yesterday.

Low Yat is well known as a mall for electronic gadgets, thus it is mentioned to ring a bell with people, he added.

Critics from both sides of the divide have slammed Ismail after he proposed a Malay-only alternative to the electronics mall Low Yat Plaza.

DAP’s Seputeh MP Teresa Kok ( photo ) pointed out that Ismail should be sacked as he goes against Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s 1Malaysia policy, whereas MCA publicity bureau chairperson Chai Kim Sen described the idea as “reeking of racial differentiation and segregation”.

MCA vice-president Chew Mei Fun also joined the critics, reprimanding Ismail for “showing himself to be completely ignorant about managing a multi-racial nation”.

Critics ignorant of Mara’s role

Rebutting this, Ismail described them as “ignorant” and “emotional”, asking the critics to look at the role of Mara.

“I am so disappointed with these two MCA leaders. They speak like DAP, very chauvinist. They are allergic to the word ‘Malay’.

“They have to understand that Mara is established to develop Malay entrepreneurs and Malay human capital.

“Because the Malays may not be able to afford to rent in other complexes, or to rent a shop as they don’t have enough capital, that’s why Mara provided Arked Mara, which is very cheap, for Malays to do their business.

“With the setting-up of a complex exclusively for Malays, they will be able to gather together,” he added.

“Almost 100 percent of those involved in the gadget business are non-Malays. The Malays are scattered everywhere. That’s why I want to turn that complex, which has only 30 shoplots into a Malay complex,” he said.

This is the second time that Ismail has become embroiled in a racial controversy this year.

In February, Ismail, who was then agriculture and agro-based industries minister, blamed the rising prices of goods on Chinese traders and called for a boycott of their businesses.

Meanwhile, negative sentiments towards Low Yat Plaza came to a boiling point after a mobile phone theft last month escalated into a fracas. Discussions about the incident online also took a racial tone.