'Imagine if it was an imam': Akmal slams Catholic joke, tells Umno delegate to apologise

Selangor Umno delegate Noorazli Said must apologise for crossing the line with a distasteful joke involving a Catholic priest and nun, said Umno Youth chief Dr Akmal Saleh.

“This is too much,” he said, adding that he was not present when Noorazli made the remarks at the recent Umno general assembly and only became aware of the incident after Malaysiakini alerted him this afternoon.

Akmal stressed that matters involving religion are particularly sensitive and should never be reduced to the punchline of a joke, noting that Muslims would likewise feel deeply aggrieved if their faith were subjected to similar treatment.

“Imagine if someone makes a similar joke but using an imam instead. Of course, we Muslims would be furious.

“So this should not have happened, and he should apologise,” he told Malaysiakini.

Roundly condemned

Noorazli’s joke has drawn condemnation from various quarters, with the Catholic Lawyers' Society of Kuala Lumpur planning to lodge a police report against the Sepang Umno chief.

Sabah lawmaker Wilfred Madius Tangau and National Unity Advisory Council member Tajuddin Rasdi have also called on Noorazli to apologise.

Wilfred described the joke as “grossly inappropriate and offensive”, while Tajuddin stressed that such remarks have no place in a multiracial and multireligious Malaysia.

Noorazli told the joke to illustrate the importance of political wisdom and praise party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s leadership.

‘Go forth and find glory’

According to the joke, a priest driving a manual Proton Saga spotted a nun waiting at a bus stop and offered her a ride home. But each time the priest changed gears, his hand brushed the nun’s thigh and stayed there.

Noorazli said each time this happened, the nun reminded him to recall Psalm 129, prompting the priest to withdraw his hand.

Upon reaching home, he added, the priest checked the Bible to see what Psalm 129 actually said, only to discover that it was not what he had assumed.

“Do you want to know what Psalm 129 says? ... Go forth and seek further up and you will find glory,” Noorazli (above) said.

The line, a variation of a joke sometimes circulated in Christian circles, does not, in fact, appear in Psalm 129.

Noorazli subsequently explained that the story was intended to convey the importance of remaining focused and knowing what one wants to achieve.

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