Following two instances where Perikatan Nasional (PN) MPs made sexist jokes in the Parliament, DAP Women’s chief Teo Nie Ching slammed the pact for its “unkind and disrespectful view” of women.
Noticing a troubling trend in the chain of thought and views of the PN MPs on polygamy and the role of women, the deputy communications and digital minister questioned the relevance of those remarks in Dewan Rakyat.
“I am appalled and disgusted by the continuous harmful narrative that Perikatan Nasional is building that lean towards sexism and the denigration of women.
“The recent remarks made by two MPs from the ethno-religious coalition not only show the quality, or lack thereof that PN has but also the unkind and disrespectful view they hold regarding women.”
She pointed to Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia’s Lumut MP Nordin Ahmad Ismail who recited a pantun with an allegory of “marrying a second wife” before asking the defence minister a question in Parliament.
“Even though Lumut MP claimed that his polygamy-themed pantun was made in jest, my question to him is, what was the point of inserting that line in the first place, if it serves no purpose?
“To him, are women always just mere punchlines to a joke?” Teo asked.
Teo said that the Opposition pact should put its energy into more pressing matters affecting the family institution.
“They should look into more pertinent issues such as the increase in divorce cases arising from adultery, failure to provide alimony and other domestic issues. To illustrate, the Department of Statistics has noted as of 2021, there were 43,934 divorce cases and from that number, more than 23,000 cases involved young couples,
“However, do we see PN members advocating for a better environment in which young couples can thrive?” Teo said.
After Nordin, Kubang Kerian MP Datuk Seri Tuan Ibharim Tuan Man, who is also the PAS deputy president suggested yesterday that polygamy could be one of the solutions to the 8.4 million unmarried women in Malaysia.
His remark was hammered by two women DAP lawmakers yesterday — Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh and Puchong MP Yeo Bee Yin — who highlighted the sexism behind describing the large number of unmarried women as a problem.
