WHILE former Barisan Nasional (BN) strategic communications deputy director Eric See-To faces a barrage of criticism over the ‘lighad’ word controversy, a PAS leader stepped forward to publicly defend him.
PAS Senator Nik Mohamad Abduh Nik Abdul Aziz stated that Eric was not at fault, claiming that the controversy was a misunderstanding stemming from what he termed a ‘slip-of-the-tongue’ (ceplos).
“Eric, you are not wrong. It was merely a misunderstanding caused by a slip-of-the-tongue. Keep on going...” wrote the former Bachok MP in the comments section of Eric’s Facebook post.
The controversy began when Eric—also known as Lim Sian See—commented on a list of unique words used by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim during the presentation of the 2027 Budget yesterday.
“I noticed the word ‘Lighad,’ which I had absolutely no idea the meaning of.
“But ‘Liwat’ [sodomy] wasn’t there,” he wrote in the comments section of the post.
For the record, the word ‘lighad’ appears in Surah al-Hasyr, verse 18, which was cited by Anwar during the 2027 Budget presentation on Friday.
Following backlash accusing him of mocking a word found in the Quran, Eric has since denied the allegations and said he intends to lodge a police report against the parties who edited and inserted Quranic verses into the post on his Facebook page.
He said the parties who should be investigated are those who created and disseminated the edited material.
Meanwhile, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has also opened an investigation into the Facebook post.
MCMC said it had recorded a statement from the individual concerned to assist its investigation and seized one mobile phone with an eSIM for forensic examination.
The case is being investigated under Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, which provides for a maximum fine of RM500,000, imprisonment for up to two years, or both, upon conviction. – October 11, 2026
