KUALA LUMPUR – The torching of Johor Baru PKR’s branch office in Larkin has nothing to do with Umno as it is not the party’s habit to resort to hostile actions or “street gangster culture”, a local Umno leader said.
Johor Baru Umno information chief Saipuddin Yusoff said it is not the culture of party members to settle political issues through violence, and they would instead voice any discontent by voting in elections.
“It is our tradition that Umno members – and Johoreans – will express dissatisfaction only through the ballot box, which is what happened during the Johor state election,” he said in a statement on Facebook today.
“The attitude of street thugs, extortion, (shouting) ‘Reformasi’ and destroying public property is not a culture born from Umno’s DNA at all,” he added, referring to the “Reformasi” chant frequently used at PKR gatherings.
Yesterday, Johor Baru MP Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir said the PKR state branch office was torched early in the morning.
The PKR central leadership council member also said he received alleged death threats from a Facebook user who left 27 hostile voice messages with insults last week.
A police report on the supposed arson and threats was lodged yesterday.
Saipuddin said that until police investigations have been concluded, there should be no attempts to obtain “cheap publicity” by pointing fingers at district Umno members for the fire which damaged the PKR office.
“Johor Baru Umno will continue to focus on reaching out to the community and solving the people’s problems,” he assured.
“This is the main agenda of the Barisan Nasional government after receiving the people’s mandate to form the government during the last general election.” – The Vibes, August 29, 2022
