Akmal needs to listen to the King, say ministers

Time to move on: Fahmi (left) and Nik Nazmi have urged all parties to stop playing up the socks issue.

KUALA LUMPUR: Two ministers have urged all parties to heed the decree by His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia and stop playing up the “Allah on socks” issue.

“For those who are Muslim and Malay, the Agong’s position is a very high level ... for me to disobey the order and deliberately interpret (His Majesty’s order) in another way is not appropriate,” said Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil as reported by Bernama.

Fahmi said this when asked about the actions of Umno Youth chief Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh, who continues to campaign for a boycott of KK Super Mart, even after it had apologised and pulled the socks from their shelves.

KK Super Mart’s founder, directors and the firm who had supplied the socks to the convenience store chain have also been charged in court.

Sultan Ibrahim, meanwhile, has decreed that no one should use the issue to incite the people.

But when asked about Sultan Ibrahim’s decree on April 3, Dr Muhamad Akmal had reportedly said: “Did the Agong forbid boycotts?”

Fahmi’s Cabinet colleague, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, said Dr Muhamad Akmal’s use of the episode for political capital has triggered extreme behaviour.

“His (Dr Muhamad Akmal’s) aggressive attitude towards this issue has invited extreme behaviour from some individuals –including the incidences of Molotov cocktails thrown at several KK Super Mart stores” said the Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister.

“Yes, KK Super Mart’s actions have hurt the hearts of Muslims but they have made an official apology and explained what happened,” Nik Nazmi said on Wednesday in a post on X.

Dr Muhamad Akmal’s exploitation of the issue will not benefit anyone said Nik Nazmi, who is also PKR vice-president.

“My advice to him (Dr Muhamad Akmal) is that the desire to introduce oneself to the political arena with issues like this will not last long, look for issues that are critical and beneficial to the people,” he said.

KK Supermart & Superstore Sdn Bhd founder and executive chairman Datuk Seri Dr Chai Kee Kan was also granted an audience with Sultan Ibrahim in which the former apologised to the King and the Muslim community, Nik Nazmi said.

“Using religious sentiments to inflame anger, causing discontent among the people when several violent incidents have already occurred, is an action that benefits no one,” he said adding that Islam was a religion that upheld justice, but emphasised kindness.

“As leaders, we cannot continue to incite the people,” he said.