DAP wants Najib to reprimand Utusan
KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 17 — DAP publicity chief Tony Pua urged the Prime Minister today to openly reprimand Utusan Malaysia for what the Petaling Jaya Utara MP called promoting extremism. Pua said Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s Malaysia Day message where he expressed sadness on the rise of extremism was not sufficient.
“Instead of just expressing his ‘sadness’ on the ‘rise of extremism’ in the country without naming those guilty of the so-called ‘extremism’, Datuk Seri Najib should openly reprimand parties who repeatedly lie and slander to harness the feelings of ill-will and
extremism among the rakyat, especially Umno’s own Utusan Malaysia,” said Pua in a statement.
“The Prime Minister’s failure to act will not only mean blanket approval for Utusan to continue its reckless actions against the DAP and Pakatan Rakyat, but it will also mean the height of irresponsibility by jettisoning of his own “1 Malaysia” goal,” he added.
Pua also pointed out that Najib has repeatedly defended Utusan in his speeches.
“In September 18 last year, he had at a breaking fast function at Sri Utusan Printing Complex hailed Utusan for ‘ethical and unbiased’ reporting,” he said.
“Just earlier this month, he told the public while breaking fast at The New Straits Times headquarters to “trust the mainstream media and not the alternative media which are based on half truths,” said Pua.
He cited several reports by the Malay daily, on the Friday sermon controversy in Penang and the surau visit by a DAP lawmaker, which he claimed were made to sow racial hatred.
He added that Utusan Malaysia also attempted to link DAP with the murder of businesswoman Datuk Sosilawati Lawiya and her friends.
“In a report yesterday, Utusan Malaysia quoted a Mohd. Zahid Md. Arip who tried to implicate DAP as being connected, even if remotely to the ghastly murders of Datuk Sosilawati Lawiya and three others,” said Pua.
In the report, Zahid who was a PKR Youth leader who defected to Umno claimed that DAP has been silent on the murder because of the suspects’ ties with the party.
“First of all, the question of DAP not condemning the murders does not arise. The party condemns all crimes, much more so heinous crimes such as the above and we have been at the forefront both in and outside parliament to call for the Royal Malaysian Police to increase their efficiency and effectiveness in fighting crime in this country,” said Pua.
“Secondly and more importantly, it is a disgusting attempt by the Umno-owned newspaper to insinuate and allege through its ‘news’ report that the murder suspects are life-members of DAP, with no attempt at all to confirm the veracity of the allegations,” he added stressing that the suspects are not party members.
Pua said Utusan’s reports reflect Umno’s desperation to maintain the Malay support.
“The unethical and downright unscrupulous attempt by Utusan Malaysia to use any and every opportunity to slander and publish lies about the DAP with the sole intent to incite racial hatred among its largely Malay readers signifies the utter desperation of the Umno leaders to maintain its hold on power, even if it were to mean using immoral means,” said Pua.
“In recent weeks, Utusan has headlined inflammatory and slanderous stories such as ‘Nama Guan Eng ganti Agong’ and alleging that the MP for Serdang, Teo Nie Ching had delivered a religious sermon in a surau, which were all based on manipulated lies,” he added.
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