Leaders of the three-member Pakatan Rakyat signed a joint statement lashing out at BN as the fallout deepens from Umno leader Ahmad Ismail’s alleged racist remarks during the Permatang Pauh by-election campaign.

"We fear that this issue is being played up to confuse the people, in order to disguise the fact that it is actually a desperate measure to try and salvage the personal interests of a small group of the political elite and their cronies," they said.

pakatan rakyat leaders meet with anwar at pkr hq 080908 01 The joint statement was signed by PKR leader Anwar Ibrahim, DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang and PAS vice-president Husam Musa after a three-hour meeting.

“Such an approach has in fact been deliberately used to divide the people and undermine the harmony of our multi-ethnic nation,” they argued.

On its part, Pakatan vows to uphold such constitutional principles as the position of Islam, freedom of religion, special position of Bahasa Melayu notwithstanding the right to learn other languages, the Council of Malay Rulers, and the privileges accorded to Malays and bumiputeras while guaranteeing the rights of all other races.

“Based on these constitutional principles, we emphatically reject the narrow racist approach which is the foundation of Umno/BN politics,” they said.

Three-hour meeting

The joint-communique followed a three-hour meeting of about a dozen Pakatan leaders at the PKR headquarters earlier this morning.

pakatan rakyat leaders meet with anwar at pkr hq 080908 02 They deliberated on developments surrounding the recent speech by Ahmad, the Bukit Bendera Umno division leader, that allegedly contained elements of racism and sedition.

Ahmad was reported to have questioned calls for equal treatment of the Chinese community given their ‘immigrant’ origins.

He also reportedly questioned the community’s willingness to share their wealth equally with the other races.

The Pakatan leaders said they object to Ahmad’s remarks and noted the support expressed for him by Penang Umno’s 13 divisions.

“His speech was typical of Umno racist policies which in reality only serve the interests of a select group of wealthy Malays, their families and close associates, who have taken advantage of their political power to plunder the national wealth, in the guise of protecting Malay and bumiputera rights,” the statement added.