A PAS leader has slammed Prime Minister Najib Razak for his public speech supporting the red shirt rally, but keeping silent on allegations raised by the Wall Street Journal ( WSJ ).
"Why is the PM continuing to praise the racially motivated red shirt rally that was organised by Umno on Sept 16?
"This is part of the diversionary tactic to indirectly shift attention and the people's conversations, so that they continue to fall into the pit of endless debate about race," said PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man in a statement today.
Instead, he said, Najib should be commenting on the many allegations against him and 1MDB.
"For example, as the PM and finance minister, Najib has not given any response about the allegations levelled by WSJ till today," he said.
Najib yesterday congratulated the red shirt rally, eventually named 'Himpunan Rakyat Bersatu', for being "peaceful".
"We are not like the opposition when they do street rallies. Malays know the country's laws," he was reported saying.
'Don't fall for race bait'
Yesterday, WSJ reported that another US$1 billion payment from 1MDB to Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Co (IPIC) is allegedly missing.
"(Abu Dhabi) officials are questioning a further $993 million that 1MDB reported it paid to the Abu Dhabi fund, IPIC, but which also appears to be largely missing, people familiar with the matter said," reported the international financial daily.
It said officials from 1MDB and IPIC did not respond to requests for comment.
Tuan Ibrahim pointed out Najib has been silent on these allegations.
"We only hear 1MDB's voice of 1MDB rubbishing the reports without answering them in a direct and transparent manner," he said.
"All this (the rally) is a tactic to stop the people from talking about 1MDB or the RM2.6 billion (in Najib's personal accounts).
"Instead, the people continue to be baited with relentless controversial statements from Umno leaders in order to continue the racial debate over the Sept 16 rally," said Tuan Ibrahim.
He called on the media not to fall for the trap and move away from reporting "sensationalist" statements and "bait" from these Umno leaders, and focus on issues that involve the people's problems.
"Be wary of this psychological warfare," he warned.
'Back to misery for red shirts'
Meanwhile PAS Pokok Sena MP Mahfuz Omar said sarcastically now that the rally is over, the participants have nothing to look forward to but a hard life ahead with the high cost of living and low wages.
"The rubber tappers will go back to the plantation to get RM2.15 a kilo that will be split in half with the owner," he quipped, adding the allowance they had allegedly received to participate would not stretch very far.
The only beneficiaries of the rally, he said, were the ministers and heads of GLCs and government agencies who were at Padang Merbok, who can go home smiling and confident that their positions are well protected.
"And who will be smiling without enduring the heat and sweat (of the rally) and without having to shout 'hidup Melayu' are Jho Low, George Kent (Tan Kay Hock) who are Najib's business partners [...] and Arul Kanda, who has been entrusted to manage 1MDB with his lucrative pay to protect Najib's wongdoings," said Mahfuz wrily.
He said the three of them are the ones who are laughing the loudest.
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