Umno race-religious card to deflect Malays from RM52bil scandal

By Malaysia Chronicle

The recent rash of Umno racial and religious politicking is to deflect Malay attention from calls for a Royal Commission of Inquiry to investigate the party for having allegedly hijacked RM52 billion worth of shares allocated to the Bumiputera community since 1971 when the New Economy Policy was launched.

“They fanned the fire and created all sorts of racial and religious issues to blindside the Malays from asking questions about the RM52 billion shares scandal,” Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng told a press conference held late on Thursday night.

Creating hatred for Guan Eng, non-Malays

Indeed, just days after Guan Eng issued a statement exposing the “monstrous hijack” and also leading calls for the establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry, Umno vice president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi began accusing him to trying to replace the King’s name with his own during Friday prayers at state mosques.

Helped by other Penang Umno leaders and Utusan daily, they created a ruckus that lasted for days. Several police reports were lodged and even Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin began calling for a thorough probe although by then the Penang religious authorities had already completed their investigations and denied the allegations.

“From the RM54 billion that was given to the Bumiputera, there is only RM2billion. This is why they kept playing racial and religious until the Malays forget about this issue,” said Guan Eng.

In his statement on August 15, Guan Eng had also said that if not for Umno siphoning out the money, the Malays would have long ago achieved their target of 30 percent of the equity in the country.

 

Read more at: http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com/2010/08/blog-post_291.html