Barely two days after warning of a possible riot at Petaling Street tomorrow, Sungai Besar Umno division chief Jamal Md Yunos disowned his role in the protest.
"I want to reiterate that I am not involved in the planned rally," Jamal said in a statement today.
"I was merely voicing out my worry and anger on a possible riot if the protest were to take place," he said.
He blamed the confusion following his speech on Sept 23 to the media, claiming that the alternative media reported only a part of his speech, without taking the whole speech into context.
"The matter can cause confusion to the readers and be intepreted wrongly by the general public," Jamal said.
The Sept 16 rally was called by National Silat Federation to “defend Malay dignity” but was marred with racial epithets hurled against the Chinese community.
It was in retaliation for the large Chinese presence at the Bersih 4 rally, which among other things called for Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s resignation.
Sensationalised by alternative media
Jamal who claimed he acted as the middleman between the protesters at Petaling Street and riot police, again spoke on their behalf on Wednesday and warned of a possible riot if the authorities failed to act on traders who sell counterfeit goods there.
"I want to explain that my statement on Wednesday was not meant to threaten or scare the people as reported and sensationalised by the media, particularly the alternative media.
"I was merely expressing my worries if the authorities, especially the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry, fail to act on traders who sell pirated products," he said.
When contacted by Malaysiakini , Jamal said he would not participate in the rally tomorrow for fear he would be called a hypocrite.
"I was only fulfilling my promise. I told them that they can spit on my face if I failed to keep my words," he said, adding that now it is up to the authorities to act.
However, when ask to elaborate on his previous statement, Jamal reiterated that a riot may happen tomorrow.
"A protest and a riot are possible. So, if a rally were to take place, the Sept 16 riot may recur," he said.
Jamal also said he would cooperate with the police if called for questioning over his "possible riot" warning.
Several police reports have been lodged against the Umno grassroots leader on the threat he made.
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