'PN’s green wave stigma can be harmful in future'
Published on: Thursday, November 23, 2023
By:
FMT, Elill Easwaran, Samuel Chua
Ahmad Faizal Azumu said the stigma of terms like ‘Taliban’ and ‘green wave’ can breed racism and demean a particular community.
SHAH ALAM: The growing trend of stigmatising Perikatan Nasional (PN) as a “green wave” could have detrimental consequences in the future, says Bersatu deputy president Ahmad Faizal Azumu.
“The stigma of terms like ‘Taliban’ and ‘green wave’ is very dangerous as it can breed racism and demean a particular community,” he said in his opening address at the Bersatu general assembly here today.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Words like ‘extremists’, ‘dark ages’, and ‘non-progressive’ associated with Islamic leadership are highly offensive.”
Faizal said that in the long run, such terms will undoubtedly be more harmful to society.
The term “green wave” was coined by politicians to describe the political rise of PN in GE15, when PAS won 43 seats in the Dewan Rakyat, the highest number by any single party, while its partner Bersatu won 25 seats.
On the government side, DAP won 40, PKR 31 and Umno 26.
ADVERTISEMENT
During the campaign trail for GE15, Perak DAP chief Nga Kor Ming had warned about a Taliban-type government, saying that Malaysia would become like Afghanistan should PN come to power.
He said PAS would push what he called extremist policies on gambling, alcohol, concerts and gender segregation.
ADVERTISEMENT
Faizal said Bersatu is gaining more acceptance than Umno among the Malay community.
“With Bersatu joining forces with PAS, PN has become the main platform to champion the Malay cause,” he said.
Faizal also spoke about the tobacco control bill, stating that the policy was approved by PN during its tenure as the government.
However, he said, “children are no longer safe; in fact, they are more at risk”.
“This is because liquid nicotine is no longer listed in the Poisons Act. This means that a five-year-old child can now buy vapes anywhere,” he said.
In October, health minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa insisted that she acted in accordance with the law in declassifying liquid nicotine as a scheduled poison.
She said Section 6 of the Poisons Act 1952 only required her to consult the Poisons Board on the proposed declassification, but did not require her to secure its approval.
Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
Daily Express Malaysia
.jpg)
.jpg)
