An MCA leader has recalled Dr Mahathir Mohamad's defence of Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali's threat to torch copies of the Bible which contained the word Allah three years ago.

Ti Lian Ker said now that Mahathir is the chairperson of Pakatan Harapan, the opposition must explain if he still holds a similar view.

Singling out DAP, he pointed out that the party enjoys tremendous support among Christians in Malaysia.

The MCA publicity spokesperson was commenting on former Perkasa Youth chief Irwan Fahmi joining PKR last week.

“The rakyat want to know the mental make-up of Harapan's 'top-dog' (a term Mahathir used to describe his position in Harapan's hierarchy) and the influx of Perkasa leaders now.

“This is the best time to seek clarification now that they are canvassing for votes before it is too late when the die is cast.

“We have witnessed both Mahathir and DAP's Lim Kit Siang making U-turns on their political postures and principles. We know they are consistently inconsistent but this is one U-turn or inconsistency that the people (particularly Christians) want to see or hear from Mahathir,” added Ti.

According to Ti, who also helms MCA's religious harmony bureau, Christians, in general, are concerned about the admission of Perkasa representatives into Harapan.

He said Christian voters are interested in knowing the stand of DAP and PKR on this matter, especially that of Christian leaders such as Teresa Kok, Hannah Yeoh and others.

“Is the presence of Perkasa leaders in Pakatan Harapan and former patron Mahathir as Harapan chairperson going to change the direction of (its defunct predecessor) Pakatan Rakyat now that they have transformed to Harapan?

“Is Harapan in line with the political aspirations or expectations of those who trusted DAP when they cast their votes for Pakatan Rakyat?” he asked.

In October 2014, Mahathir said Ibrahim's threat to torch copies of the Bible was not seditious and that it was a Muslim practice to discard unusable copies of the Quran by burning them.

“We always burn the Quran, when it is old and no longer in use. What is sure is that we cannot throw it around. So, burning the Quran with good intentions is not a problem,” he added.

He said Ibrahim was showing respect for copies of the Bible that he felt should be discarded because it contained the word Allah.

“In other words, he was giving an opinion that could be accepted by Muslims. It was not his intention to provoke tension between Muslims and the non-Muslims,” he added.