The Malaysian Insight

DISCRIMINATION faced by non-Muslim communities due to government policies deprive them of developmental and financial aid, Lim Guan Eng said today.

The DAP secretary-general was responding to an article published by The Malaysian Insight, in which the Chinese community of Terengganu complained that they have been neglected by the Islamist government.

“The sad reality of the exclusion and neglect suffered by the Chinese community as a result of the racist and extremist policies of the Perikatan Nasional and Barisan Nasional governments at state and federal level.

“The discrimination faced by non-Malays has deprived them of both development and financial aid, not just in Terengganu but in many states.

“Such discrimination is not only unfair but also unconstitutional to citizens and those who pay tax,” Lim said in a statement today, asking why citizens who are minorities in Terengganu are not given financial aid, while the government offers aid to the Taliban in Afghanistan.

PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang recently pledged to help the Taliban-run Afghan government with humanitarian and economic aid.

Lim, the MP for Bagan, also accused Kedah Menteri Besar Sanusi Md Nor and the federal government for being hostile to the sensitivities of non-Muslims.

Of late, the PAS led Kedah government demolished Hindu temples and banned four-digit (4D) gambling outlets in the state.

In Kuala Lumpur, convenience stores and Chinese medicine halls were banned from selling alcohol by City Hall.

“By interfering in the normal business practices and customary lifestyle of non-Muslims, both BN and PN hope to hide their failures of leadership and poor governance, by garnering support from one community at the expense of others. 

“The BN and PN governments, at federal and state level, have forgotten that they are leaders not of one community, but of all Malaysians in accordance with the Federal Constitution.”

The government’s recent actions are in contrast with Prime Minister Ismail Sabri’s Keluarga Malaysia motto, Lim added.

“Ismail’s Keluarga Malaysia lacks credibility when he refuses to dispel feelings of marginalisation and even neglect by the non-Malay or non-Muslim community.” – February 13, 2022.