The Barisan Nasional member of Parliament who uttered the 'F' word apologised to the House today but not without stirring another round of furore among the MPs.

MP for Kinabatangan Bung Moktar Radin said 'sorry' somewhat reluctantly when speaker Tun Mohamed Zahir Ismail requested him to do so.

However, after he apologised, DAP MP for Kota Melaka Kerk Kim Hock, MP for Bukit Bintang Fong Kui Lun and MP for Cheras Tan Kok Wai left the House.

Bung Moktar misconstrued their action as 'rude' and a shouting match ensued for several minutes between BN and the opposition MPs.

The three MPs later told reporters that they were leaving for an appointment.

Mohamed Zahir adjourned the House for 10 minutes as result of the verbal fracas after the DAP MP for Batu Gajah Fong Po Kuan raised a point of order to stop the furore.

'Unconditional apology'

Speaking to reporters at the Parliament lobby earlier, Mohamed Zahir said he would request Bung Moktar to make an 'unconditional apology' to the House as his action was unprecedented.

"This is serious, the F-word should not be used at all in any circumstances," said the veteran speaker.

Earlier, PAS had criticised Bung Moktar for uttering the obscenity and urged him to apologise for his "bad and ugly behaviour".

PAS president Fadzil Noor said that this was the first time such a profanity was uttered in the House and urged the Speaker to issue the necessary disciplinary punishment on Bung Mokhtar.

"Action should be taken and this should be a lesson to other MPs. That word has no place in the House and only goes to show the character of the person who uttered it," said Fadzil in a statement.

Fadzil also lamented that in recent times the MP's tend to loose their "cool heads" and create unnecessary tension.

Yesterday, Bung Mokhtar uttered the word amid a shouting match over DAP MP for Bukit Mertajam Chong Eng's remark that Chinese-based Barisan Nasional component parties had conceded that Malaysia was an Islamic state.