Don't swallow opposition's race, religion bait, Yeoh tells govt MPs

Don't swallow opposition's race, religion bait, Yeoh tells govt MPs

Martin Vengadesan & Isabelle Leong
Published: Apr 9, 2024 10:00 AM


INTERVIEW | Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh has warned her fellow government MPs against falling for the opposition’s racial and religious provocations.

Highlighting the predominant presence of race-based party Bersatu and religion-based party PAS within the opposition bloc, she noted it is not surprising for them to steer every issue through the lens of race and religion.

Citing the recent controversy surrounding the recognition of bak kut teh as a national heritage dish, she noted that the broth was not the only food item listed and explained why the issue was played up by the opposition.

“It’s because they (the opposition) have an audience like that. As a result, things that were not a problem before can be a problem today.

“The criticisms we hear are very similar to the noise we heard in 2018 when Pakatan Harapan first took over Putrajaya. At that time, Umno and PAS were in the opposition.

“You need to understand the nature of the opposition. And for us, don’t swallow that bait they place for us,” Yeoh said during an exclusive interview with Malaysiakini at her ministry last Thursday (April 4).

The DAP parliamentarian then said the opposition playing up racial and religious sentiments during Harapan rule was unlike when the multiracial coalition was itself in the opposition.

“The people perceive it to be a time of peace (when Harapan was in opposition),” she said.


Govt working hard on reforms

In a separate development, Yeoh assured that the administration led by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is diligently striving to push for reforms.

This comes after strong criticism from supporters that the pace of reform was slow and there were no noticeable improvements and progress.

In response, Yeoh complimented Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said and the latter’s former deputy minister Ramkarpal Singh for the passing of several important legislation including the anti-stalking law, the repeal of the mandatory death sentence, and the decriminalisation of suicide attempts, among others.

“That was all in the first year (after the coalition government took over Putrajaya). Many ministers have also started pushing for reforms in various ministries.

“My message to our supporters is yes, we all want reforms and I can assure our supporters that we are working very hard to make this work,” she added.


‘Promote women based on merit’

The Segambut MP said she looks forward to the day when talks on the quota for women’s participation in decision-making roles end.

She advocated for the promotion of women based on their capabilities, asserting the right of women to sit in the cabinet.

“That’s what I want to see. We have a lot more women leaders in politics compared to when I started in 2008.

“I feel that a lot of times, the catalyst to grow comes in the form of role models.

“And that’s why I think women leaders must be very open and frank about their challenges.”

She revealed that she was able to survive in politics due to having a good support system.

“But I know that not everyone will have the same structure, whether it’s at home or in their political position.

“So, in this process, I hope that we will be able to inspire more people to want to give it a try.”


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