Buy Muslim products campaign not racist, says organiser

Mohd Farhan Darwis Mohd Farhan Darwis Updated 4 years ago · Published on 3 Sep 2019 7:14PM · 6 Comments

Ummah chairman Aminuddin Yahaya says it only urged consumers to use their purchasing power to support Muslim products. – The Malaysian Insight file pic, September 3, 2019.

A MUSLIM rights group said its buy Muslim products only campaign is not racist as it does not call for a boycott of products manufactured by non-Muslims.

Gerakan Pembela Ummah (Ummah) chairman Aminuddin Yahaya said the campaign should not be linked to race and religion, which some government leaders have done. 

“Ummah is disappointed and amused by the statements made by a few political leaders who had linked the campaign to racial and religious issues.

“In fact, there are some linking it to political parties. Ummah would like to affirm that the campaign is not meant to boycott products made by manufacturers of other races. 

“It is also not linked to any government or opposition political parties,” he said. 

The organiser of the campaign said it had not called for consumers to boycott products produced by non-Muslims. 

“We never told any consumers to boycott non-Muslim products. We only asked them to use their purchasing power to support Muslim products.

“If there are no Muslim products, then use products manufactured by non-Muslims that are suitable with the teachings of Islam,” he said. 

Aminuddin added that the group was not oppressing any non-Muslim manufacturers through its campaign.

“It would only be considered racism if we pressed others. We are not oppressing others but just trying to help poor Muslims who are unable to make ends meet.”

He said recent remarks by Pakatan Harapan leaders on the campaign had put racial harmony in the country at risk.

Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad had said such campaigns against non-Muslims and non-Bumiputera products would only serve to incite anger. 

Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng had, on the other hand, asked Malay-Muslim parties PAS and Umno to act responsibly and put a stop to the campaign. 

PKR president Anwar Ibrahim had said Muslims should promote halal products and not launch campaigns to boycott any products on racial grounds. 

On these reactions by PH leaders, Aminuddin reiterated that the campaign was not racist but aimed to give small businesses and those operating outside urban areas a competitive advantage. 

Through this campaign, Aminuddin said the group wanted to help Muslim entrepreneurs improve their economic well-being and raise them to be on a par with other races. 

The campaign was jointly launched by Ummah and the Muslim Consumers Association of Malaysia on April 2 at the Kuala Lumpur Tower. 

Another campaign was launched on July 23 with the Al-Hilal Coperation Bhd and application service provider Abata Commerce Sdn Bhd. 

Ummah will also hold a nationwide road show to create further awareness on the campaign, with the first phase starting in Penang on Sunday. 

This will be followed by Kedah on September 9; Selangor and Kuala Lumpur (September 16); and, Johor (September 28).

Another mega campaign is planned for October 1, the location for which has yet to be determined. 

The second phase of the road show will cover east coast states, such as Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang. – September 3, 2019.

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Comments

  • Ini orang Najib

    Posted 4 years ago by Penganalisa L · Reply

  • Only if we do not know you.

    Posted 4 years ago by Tanahair Ku · Reply

  • Go by this Moron's crooked logic, if someone start a 'buy non Muslim products only' campaign that should not be regarded as racist too!
    The government should take immediate action to stop all this nonsense.

    Posted 4 years ago by Chee yee ng · Reply

  • These types of campaigns are parochial in nature. By creating Muslim products:
    1. you will be limiting your market penetration or market share, thus limiting sales and revenue.
    2. When the market grows & competition sets in, sales & revenue for each operator will drop. When the number of players in the market increases, sales & revenue will drop because the market is more or less fixed/limited - Muslim market.
    4. Once the products become accepted in the Muslim fraternity, the product will assume its own product identity as a Muslim product and it will be difficult for the said product to then penetrate any other market, except export market. Next question - How many operators would then have the capacity to export the products despite financial assistance from the state or government? There will be some but what about the rest..
    In a multi racial country like Malaysia, it would be preferable to manufacture products that can be accepted by communities of different cultural background... unless they are products specific to cultural and religious needs of society.

    Posted 4 years ago by Kampung Boy · Reply

  • Its my personal opinion the racial tension lines have been extended to the fullest and its now put up in the open. Post last election we have seen certain low-minded Malaysian testing and abusing the authorities that are primarily Malays. Outlets offering pork serving using Malay name such as Rendang etc etc. Then we have Malay outlets offering its services only to the Malays communities and were asked to stop. Never before we had people attacking Muslims prophet Muhammad except under the horizon of Malaysia Baru. Viral posting of some people with bad tamper and attitude making its way. Certainly commenting the Malaysia armed forces are a bunch of spoon fed employee who does nothing and saying the Chinese educationist group, as racist doesnt helps though both are a political chess board moves. Some Malays are under the impression that they have to do something or step up the game and these are some of the outcomes. The non Malays felts under the 61 years ruled they were oppressed and their voices wasnt been heard and that they were second class citizen and now under the new Malaysia Baru the Malays were made that they are been under attack. Giving the above scenarios it clearly shows that race & religion if well-managed can certainly drives an agenda depending on how ones to used it. I could be wrong but the current crops of people are hard to change but if someone has a farsighted sight and make a collective call to overhaul our dammed education syllabus that we are doomed for future generation of Malaysian.

    Posted 4 years ago by In my 60's · Reply

  • There are struggling Malaysians who are not Muslim as well. Non-Muslims are constantly portrayed by these type of people as being well-off. Why such bias towards just one race? The only answer is that its political. That there is no genuineness in it. If they really cared for people as a whole, they would be talking about how to support small businesses regardless of whether they are Muslim. That would be what fair-minded, decent human beings would call for.

    Posted 4 years ago by Sunita petrus · Reply