AGRICULTURE and Agro-based Industry Minister Salahuddin Ayub has denied making racist comments as alleged by the opposition.

The first-term minister, however, said that his speech made at a closed door meeting in SJKC Pei Chio in Tg Piai was only a reminder about the danger of manipulating and playing up religious and racial issues.

“I reminded them about being careful with a political party using racial sentiments who is now being friends with a party that uses religion as a tool. We lived in harmony and peacefully among different races and creed.

“In our constitution, we allow others to practise their religion and we uphold Islam as the official religion. We want to maintain peace. Don’t allow any hate speech to be played in this by-election,” he told the media in parliament.

Umno vice-president Mahdzir Khalid had urged the Election Commission to investigate Salahuddin for playing up racial sentiments during a speech at the school.

He alleged that Salahuddin had lied when he said the country would turn chaotic once Umno and PAS become the government.

“I know there are certain people who are angry with PH but if we allow BN and its new friend PAS to return to power, the country would be chaotic,” Salahuddin said.

“We can still do business, we can still send our kids to school. There is no one getting shot. We can’t do business we can’t even go to the sea,” Mahdzir quoted Salahuddin as saying.

Mahdzir said he could not understand why the Amanah vice-president would still accuse Umno and PAS as racist parties when they have named MCA’s Wee Jeck Seng as the BN candidate for the Tg Piai by-election.

“We named Wee Jeck Seng, how can we be racist,” he said. – November 5, 2019.