Stop making outbreak a racial issue, Saifuddin tells M'sians
CORONAVIRUS | Foreign Affairs Minister Saifuddin Abdullah has urged Malaysians to cease looking at Putrajaya's efforts to resolve the novel coronavirus outbreak as a racial issue.
He said it was merely a coincidence that the epidemic hailed from China.
CORONAVIRUS | Foreign Affairs Minister Saifuddin Abdullah has urged Malaysians to cease looking at Putrajaya's efforts to resolve the novel coronavirus outbreak as a racial issue.
He said it was merely a coincidence the epidemic hailed from China.
"When we want to resolve the novel coronavirus problem, people are trying to play up the racial issue. (But) the novel coronavirus is coincidentally from China," he told the media at a Chinese New Year event in Kuantan, Pahang, yesterday.
"Previously, there was (also) the Ebola (outbreak) in Africa and other epidemics from other continents, but we never had any racial issue then.
"That's why I hope, as Malaysians, we (must) stop (playing up) racial issues," he said.
Saifuddin blamed the phenomenon to the racial politics inherited by Pakatan Harapan.
"Without realising, it (racial politics) has infiltrated the community and has become a way of life in Malaysia," he said.
"Some people are delighted as they can take advantage of racial politics.
"We, in Harapan, intend to stop racial politics but it is not easy. We have been accused of being the cause of the problem (racial politics) when we try to deal with the matter," lamented Saifuddin, who is also Harapan chief secretary.
Citing an incident where the wrong national flag was displayed before a basketball match in Perak last year, he reiterated that was not a racial issue but some had blamed the DAP, MCA and the Chinese community.
"This goes to show the racial politics that we had witnessed. It was merely the wrong national flag used in a basketball match," he said.
"The Jawi lesson (for vernacular schools) and lanterns also become a racial issue."
He was referring to when SMK Pusat Bandar Puchong 1 was forced to take down lanterns and other Chinese New Year decorations recently following a complaint by lawyer Mohd Khairul Azam Abdul Aziz, who is also Putra vice-president.
"Lanterns were used for centuries by Malaysians and it was never an issue until recently," Saifuddin added.
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