These days, the things people say in Malaysian politics come as no surprise, but 2015 has produced some really WTF moments. Here are some of the headline grabbing quotes of the year:
1. Eating turtle eggs
Image via Malay Mail Online
When a photo of Rural and Regional Development Minister Ismail Sabri consuming turtle eggs at a function was circulated online, his reaction was, “Honestly, I didn’t know that there were laws against it.”
Ismail defended himself by saying that he was merely a guest at the event and was not responsible for ordering the food, emphasising that he did not eat the eggs. “I didn’t do any ordering. It was there. You cannot blame me and say I ate it just because it was on the table.” This was countered with more online photos showing eggs on the minister’s plate. Ismail said he didn’t know what type of eggs they were.
Environmentalists criticised the Minister for his response as it was unacceptable for public officials to plead ignorance to state legislation prohibiting consumption of turtle eggs. It is illegal to harvest turtle eggs in Sabah under the Sabah Wildlife Enactment 1997. Those guilty of harvesting, selling or consuming turtle eggs in the state can be fined up to RM50,000 or jailed for five years or both. The minister has sinced expressed his intention to take legal action against those responsible for the photos.
2. Waking up early
Image credit: The Ant Daily
“Wherever there are tolls, there are alternative routes. So you can avoid tolls just that you would have to brave the traffic. You would have to invest in more time, waking up earlier. It’s about trading off,” were the words of Housing and Local Government Minister Abdul Rahman Dahlan to the government’s move to raise toll rates recently.
His dismissal of criticisms of the toll hike saw motorists rebutting his defence of the rise, and social media users instead asking the minister himself to wake up at 3am to avoid tolls and use alternative roads.
In late October, toll rates were increased between 10 sen and RM3 at 18 highways within the Klang Valley.
3. Shortage of national leaders
Another headline-grabbing quote from Abdul Rahman Dahlan, ““That’s the easy way out. I don’t think our prime minister should just succumb to allegations. Otherwise we will be out of prime ministers.”
The minister said this in reaction to calls for Prime Minister Najib Razak to step down over the allegations of a RM2.6 billion donation being transferred into the PM’s bank account. Abdul Rahman said, “So as long as there is no proof, no charge, no verdict, he will have to go on,” of the ongoing investigations into the graft allegation.
In a report by the Wall Street Journal, it said a Malaysian government probe had found that the RM2.6billion or nearly US$700 million moved through banks, agencies and companies linked to 1MDB before being deposited into Najib’s alleged private accounts ahead of an election.
Najib is the founder of 1MDB, and although the donor of the funds were not made known, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission had said the source was from the Middle East and that it had met with the donor. Najib has denied wrongdoing or taking any money for personal gain.
4. Don’t talk about corruption at an anti-graft conference
Another winning quote by Minister Abdul Rahman Dahlan is when he ticked off Transparency International president Jose Ugaz for criticising Malaysia’s unresolved investigation into the alleged RM2.6 billion being deposited into the PM’s accounts.
“So, it was not the right place for the president of Transparency International to blurt out allegations like that, it’s been rebutted by the chief secretary anyway,” said Abdul Rahman, who also said it was “out of place” for those at the conference to criticise the host country.
Ugaz had said Malaysia would not progress in its fight against corruption if questions surrounding the RM2.6 billion amount remain unanswered.
The September anti-corruption conference was organised in Putrajaya and saw the participation of some 1,000 anti-graft experts from all over the world. Najib was originally scheduled to give the keynote address but was replaced by another minister. He was said to have stayed away to avoid facing hostile activists.
5. God and corruption
At the same conference, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Abdul Wahid Omar in his closing speech had said those who had committed any crime would ultimately be punished though not immediately.
He acknowledged that the country was facing “certain difficult issues” but said the truth will come out in the end. “When it comes to the law, it does not only have a long arm but also a very long memory. If all of us play our respective parts, don’t worry. If any crime has been committed, it will be found out.
“If not today, tomorrow, next month, or five years down the road or 10 years down the road. Rest assured, there is God in this world and the truth will prevail,” he had said.
6. The Chosen One
At the recent UMNO General Assembly, Jerlun MP had reportedly said party president Najib Razak was the country’s prime minister as he had been chosen by Allah. MP Othman Aziz had said, “Not everyone can be a prime minister. There’s only one of him. The reason Allah chose him was because he is the chosen one.”
Othmad had said Najib “has admirable professional management skills; he has the delegates and tools of management”, and called UMNO members to work together with Najib and to have a sense of belonging in the party.
7. Unsewn clothes
Another gem from the UMNO assembly was brought by Penang delegate Ahmad Darus who called the uniform of Malaysian Airlines or MAS’ stewardesses “indecent and against Islamic teaching.” Ahmad offered tailoring services from the party’s women chiefs, stating that, “The men are dressed decently but the women, we let them wear “unsewn clothes”.
8. Ahmad Maslan
Image credit: The Rakyat Post
We saved the best for last.
This year, former Deputy Finance Minister Ahmad Maslan shared the spotlight with Abdul Rahman for unforgettable quotes. For Ahmad, it was his comments on the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and his unyielding support for PM Najib that received most attention.
Ahmad shot to stardom for his Twitter activity, particularly on sharing a recipe to cook GST-free fried rice where he was ridiculed for decorating cucumbers all around the rice within the wok itself. Twitter users asked him if he was eating the rice straight from the kuali, while others asked him to use the cucumbers instead for facial masks.
And in the same photo, he was shown cooking the rice next to an insectiside spray at the kitchen hob. The current Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry said there was no problem with the poisonous spray being placed so close to the food and wok because he wasn’t “spraying it into the fried rice”.
Nearly everything Ahmad said was turned into a joke. He was called the “3.85 Minister”, for he had tweeted, “I am not so stupid. First degree at Victoria University Wellington New Zealand, MBA in UKM best student among 177 people, CGPA 3.85.” These comments came after he was wishing good luck to those students taking the PMR and STPM examinations this year.
And to close the year, Ahmad’s reaction to rising costs, really had the rakyat beating down on him.
He had said it was was not wrong to hold two jobs to cope with the higher living costs. In fact to outdo his critics, he went further to say, “I have three jobs: member of parliament, deputy minister, and Umno information chief. There are already many people in Malaysia who do #2kerja. (They are) working hard to find halal income,” he said.
Critics hit out at Ahmad, saying that it was unreasonable to ask ordinary Malaysians to work 16 hour days, and those that do hold several jobs make significantly less than Ahmad. The deputy minister takes home close to RM35,000 in salary and allowances as a public servant and member of parliament.
In the social media sphere, comedian Harith Iskandar lashed out at Ahmad. In Harith’s Facebook post, it said, “I am a comedian, emcee, writer, actor, coach, director. That does not mean I have six jobs. It means I do six different things. In the context of a government servant, you could say I hold six different posts.A job is something you do every day all day. So for a person to have two jobs that would mean they work minimum 2 x 8 hour shifts a day. That’s 16 working hours, a day,” his post read.
The Perlis Mufti too chided Ahmad. Despite not naming the deputy minister, Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin’s Facebook post gave enough clues for readers to assume that he was referring to Ahmad.
Dr Asri’s post read, “A minister should be lucid, smart and quick to solve the problems of the people and nation. If wits and agility are not required to become a minister, what is the advantage that warrants salary and special allocations for those in the position,” he said, adding that ministers should offer workable solutions.
Ahmad didn’t back down, he continued to defend his two job remark, by insisting that Malaysians could be more entrepreneurial in earning a side income, that included an online business. AT the same time he attacked opposition politicians too.
“#2kerja Lim Guan Eng – state assemblyman, MP, and Chief Minister. Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail – state assemblyman, MP, Opposition leader. Three jobs. I suggested existing job + online business. Angry?” Ahmad tweeted.
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