Khairy declines comment over 'beruk' remark apology
Malaysiakini.com
May 5, 2008 
Fauwaz Abdul Aziz 

The deputy Umno Youth chief today declined to respond when asked to comment on a challenge for him to apologise for calling participants to a Bersih rally last November ‘beruk' (monkeys).
MCPX

burmese umno demo 011007 khairy jamaluddin"No comment, thank you," said Khairy when met outside the Dewan in Parliament today.

"No, no, no. No, thanks," he added when pressed.

Last week, DAP's Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo challenged Khairy to apologise for his statement on Nov 7 last year at the Umno Youth annual general meeting when he urged the authorities to crack down hard on the Bersih rally calling for electoral reforms which took place three days later.

"Don't be like beruk (monkeys) on streets. If you want to fight, fight in the real ring like a man. At the general elections we (Umno Youth) will fight and we will win!" said Khairy during his winding-up speech.

Hishammuddin sets example

Citing Umno Youth chief Hishammuddin Hussein's recent apology to the Malaysian public for his practice of raising and kissing the keris at the past three Umno Youth AGMs, Gobind said Khairy should follow his leader's example.

"I think what Hishammuddin has done is perhaps the beginning of what should come from Barisan Nasional leaders: a series of apologies to the Malaysian public at large for issuance of statements that affected them," he had said at a press conference.

"Now an elected representative, a member of parliament for Rembau, a person who is supposed to represent not only himself but all his constituents, in addition to that being a deputy youth chief of Umno and the son-in-law of the prime minister, I think he should take responsibility and own up and apologise.

"This is my challenge to him," added Gobind, who described Khairy's use of the term beruk as "unacceptable".

"You do not go around calling people names like that.

"His boss has taken the first step towards correcting the wrongs that Umno Youth has placed on the people of Malaysia, I am challenging him to follow suit. Do the right thing and apologise to the people of Malaysia for having said that." he added.

Name calling has been the staple of Malaysian politics with the latest incident last week when Gobind's father, Karpal, was called a big monkey in Parliament by a government backbencher in responding to DAP leader's "Bigfoot" accusation.

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