Gathering held at Putrajaya mosque demanding Waytha's sacking

Some 300 people gathered at the Putra Mosque in Putrajaya this afternoon to demand the sacking of Minister in the Prime Minister's Department P Waythamoorthy over the death of firefighter Muhammad Adib Mohd Kassim.

Led by Gerakan Pembela Ummah, those present carried banners and photos of Adib.

After several NGO leaders delivered their speeches, the group marched to the Prime Minister's Office to submit a memorandum.

The memorandum called on Mahathir to sack Waythamoorthy, whom the group blamed for fanning racial sentiments that allegedly led to Adib being attacked during the Nov 27 riot outside the Sri Maha Mariamman temple in Subang Jaya.

They also called for the sacking of Human Resources Minister M Kulasegaran and Selangor exco member V Ganabatirau.

Ummah chairperson Aminuddin Yahaya in his speech called for the government to take action against Waythamoorthy, Kulasegaran and Ganabatirau, saying that they were responsible for the riot and Adib's death.

"Today we deliver a memorandum to call for the sacking of National Unity Minister Waythamoorthy and Human Resources Minister Kulasegaran... We also want to ask the prime minister to tell the Selangor menteri besar to sack Selangor exco Ganabatirau.

"Because these three people were the ones who caused us to be in this mess. The death of Adib was also caused by them.

"We want everyone who were involved (in the riot) to be hauled to face justice as soon as possible," he told the protesters.

Lift moratorium

In his speech, Aminuddin also urged the Pakatan Harapan government to lift its moratorium on the death penalty so that Adib's killers can receive capital punishment.

He said they also demanded an apology from Waythamoorthy for accusing the police of being late in responding to the temple issue on Nov 26; and for the temple priest to issue an apology following the priest's claim that Adib was injured by a firetruck.

Meanwhile, Darul Islah Association president Masridzi Sat, who is also an Ummah committee member, warned of an uprising should the prime minister fails to address their demands for the ministers' sacking.

Saying that the patience of the Malays had been running thin, Masridzi stressed that they might not be able to restrain their anger any longer.

He told the protesters that the Malays in the country were no longer facing a mere political challenge but it had came to a point where a Muslim had been killed in the country.

"This time the patience of Malays has come to its minimum level. And God willing, in front of this mosque today we promise in the name of Allah that if they continue to challenge us, that if we fail to get up against them we will be resurrected in front of Allah as dayus (cowards).

"Hey Waythamoorthy, Kulasegaran and Ganabatirau, we cannot stand to be dayus.

"Be reminded, we Malays are not dayus, but we Malays are full of patience, politeness and 'akhlak mulia' (noble character).

"(But) now we cannot hold our patience anymore, and if the prime minister does not sack these people we will mobilise the ummah (Muslim community) to teach these people. Do not wait until Muslims take laws into our own hands as this will not end well for our country," he said to the cheers of other rally participants.

Awaiting gov't response

In a press conference after delivering the memorandum, Aminuddin's deputy Kamaruzzaman Mohamad said the group would wait for the government's response before announcing their next course of action.

He said they would give it a week, and if there were no response, Ummah would organise a "bigger rally".

"We will see in maybe the next one week, if there is no positive response from the government, we will announce our next action," he said.

Aminuddin said they had delivered the memorandum to Mahathir's political secretary Abu Bakar Yahaya.

He said Abu Bakar had promised to bring their memorandum up with the premier.

Among other demands made in their memorandum include urging the police to investigate Waythamoorthy and Kulasegaran for making seditious remarks that had allegedly incited people to riot at the temple, and for the ministers' alleged attempt to interfere with the judicial process concerning the temple's land ownership issues.

Adib, who died at age 24, was part of the Fire and Rescue Department team deployed in response to vehicles being torched by rioters outside the Sri Maha Mariamman temple on Nov 27. According to police, he was dragged out of his vehicle and assaulted.

Waythamoorthy is accused of having inflamed tensions when he and three other ministers chastised the police for the latter's initial claim that fighting at the temple was between two Indian groups.

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