KUALA LUMPUR – A Pakatan Harapan lawmaker today questioned the intention of Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s (Bera-BN) speechwriters when they prepared a text that had supposedly humiliated the prime minister.
Datuk Hasanuddin Mohd Yunus (Hulu Langat-PH) said Ismail Sabri’s earlier remarks on the flooding in the Dewan Rakyat today had downplayed the cries for help from victims and demeaned rescue agencies.
Speaking in the lower house, the Amanah MP said the prime minister’s claim that some victims refused help was misleading, as there has been evidence of those shouting to be rescued from the roofs of their houses.
“I’m worried those who prepared the prime minister’s speech had unintentionally embarrassed him,” he said when debating the flood issue during today’s special sitting.
“Victims waited for hours fighting for their lives. How can the prime minister say such a thing? I would like to remind those who prepared the text to be more careful not to humiliate him.”
Similarly, Hasanuddin said it was not appropriate for the speechwriter to degrade the government rescue teams when they claimed the agencies had difficulties in conducting their rescue operations as the day was turning dark.
“Is this their assessment of our rescue agencies, or do the speechwriters have other intentions?”
Hasanuddin added that Ismail Sabri’s accusation that the state government and district authorities had been slow in their disaster response would also mean that the blame had gone to the civil servants as well.
In his speech today, Ismail Sabri had pinned the blame on Selangor for the slow response by the authorities, saying the state had, among other things, ignored early warnings issued by the Meteorological Department.
He also appeared to blame flood victims for slowing down rescue efforts, saying many had refused to leave their houses when evacuation was being carried out, adding that rescue agencies faced challenges to operate when the day turned dark. – The Vibes, January 20, 2022
