Gerakan has hit back at Sarawak Perkasa chief Abang Abdul Nasser Abang Hadari for saying that the Chinese had betrayed the ruling coalition by repaying milk with poison, describing the remark as “spiteful and poor taste”.

Gerakan vice-president Dato Mah Siew Keong said the question of betrayal did not arise at all because the Chinese community there had not made any promises that they would support the ruling coalition.

Moreover, Dato Mah added, the state elections in Sarawak were held to allow citizens to democratically elect their representatives to the state assembly.

Dato Mah also described Abang Abdul Nasser’s remarks as racist, immature and out of touch with the real world.

“We all should respect the majority voters’ decision. It was urban voters including all races who voted against the ruling coalition and not merely the Chinese voters,” said Dato Mah in a statement.

Dato Mah said the government should listen to the voice of majority urban voters, study it and introduce tangible and acceptable changes that would benefit all races.

He noted that Kedah and Kelantan electorates which comprised Malays as the majority had also voted against the government but the federal government had never sidelined the two states.

“There were also no calls by any group asking the government to sideline the two states just because the electorates there did not support the government. So please, please don’t make the Sarawak state elections results into a racial issue,” he said.

Dato Mah pointed out that the urban voters’ needs and aspirations are different from those of rural voters. “They want to see fair and just policies; they are also very concerned with national issues and the way the government handles those issues.”

The Sarawak chapter of right-wing Malay rights group Perkasa had told the BN to brush aside the demands of the Chinese and focus instead on “reinstating” the rights and privileges of the bumiputeras in the state.

Sarawak Perkasa chief Abang Abdul Nasser Abang Hadari said the Chinese have betrayed the ruling coalition by “membalas susu dengan tuba” (repaying milk with poison),” he said in a statement.

“Ever since Perkasa was launched in Sarawak, it has never questioned any claims by the Chinese, as a sign of respect for the 1Malaysia concept.

“The Chinese community should blame Pakatan Rakyat, and even more so DAP, if Sarawak’s pribumi community were denied all their demands.”