Confronted by an angry senior citizen outside his office demanding an apology for a remark he made, Pahang Menteri Besar Adnan Yaakob, after a round of vulgar exchanges with the septuagenarian, reportedly took out a stack of ringgit notes and offered to “buy food” for her. ”His action has disgraced himself. I don’t feel insulted at all. Instead I despise him more. He is not fit to be the MB,” said Tuw Yin Lan, the 71-year-old anti-Lynas Green March activist who is more popularly known as Aunty Mei.”It has shown his personality and the true colours of the government,” Tuw told Malaysiakini when contacted today.
She was arrested after trying to demand an apology from Adnan outside the MB’s office at the state secretariat building in Kuantan on Wednesday afternoon.
March to protest rare earths plant
Tuw was disgruntled with Adnan’s earlier remark that the participants in the 300km Green March from Kuantan to Kuala Lumpur last month had only walked 200 metres and completed himpunan hijau green walk aunty meithe rest of their journey “in luxury and in motorcars“.
She was among those who joined the march organised by Himpunan Hijau to protest against Lynas rare earths refinery in Gebeng, Kuantan.
The heated confrontation between her and Adnan was reported in detail in yesterday’s issue of Chinese daily China Press.
Adnan (right) arrived at his office some 45 minutes after Tuw, who was clad in the symbolic green T-shirt of Himpunan Hijau and armed with a poster, waited alone in front of the state secretariat building.
When Adnan took a quick glance at Tuw as he prepared to enter the building, Tuw shouted at him and demanded, in inarticulate Malay, that he apologises to all the Green March participants for his reported remarks.
This sparked a five-minute war of words between Tuw and the menteri besar, who is well known for his hot temper and crude language.
Tuw: I come to see you, apologise quick.
Adnan: Okay, I have met you. (Turns to enter the building)
Tuw (shouts): Say sorry quickly! You have said something wrong! Do you know I walked (in the Green March) that NONEday?
Adnan: You say it nicely. (You cakap baik-baik)
Tuw: I’m saying it nicely. I’m talking facts.
Adnan: You say it nicely. Don’t you know who I am?
Tuw: Of course I know who you are. Everyone knows.
Adnan: Are you crazy? (You gila?)
Tuw: You are the crazy one.
Adnan then turns around and walks into the building, with Tuw shouting at his back.
Tuw: Quickly, say sorry! You lied.
Adnan turns back towards her.
Adnan: Quickly, go home and eat! Have you eaten? Do you have money? Adnan then asks the people who have gathered around: What is her job? Where is she staying?
Tuw: You are a beast! (You binatang) You think you are so powerful that you can simply talk nonsense and lies?
Adnan: If I am a beast, you are a beast too!
Tuw (tells the police present): Everyone can lie! But he cannot, quick go and arrest him!
According to the China Press report, Adnan then calmed down and took out a stack of ringgit notes (right), with which he tried to pacify Tuw, who then threw a poster she was holding at Adnan. The police blocked her move.
The furious activist then tried to charge at Adnan, but she was stopped just in time by two of her friends who had rushed to the scene after being informed.
Tuw and friends arrested
The three were later arrested by police and taken to the Kuantan police district headquarters to be investigated under Section 186 and 189 of the Penal Code for obstructing a public servant in the discharge of public functions and for threatening injury to a public servant.
They were released at around 4pm that day.
One of the three arrested, Wong Chun Yuan, told Malaysiakini that the stack of money that Adnan took out was in RM50 notes.
Wong claimed after the incident, another man approached him, also with a stack of RM50 notes, and asked him to take Tuw for a meal.
He said he could not respond to this as the situation then was chaotic.
However, Tuw said she only learnt about the cash offering by Adnan after the incident.
“I did not see him taking out the money because it was very chaotic. If I knew about it, I would probably have spat on him,” she said when contacted today.
China Press also reported that during the incident, an unidentified man clarified to Tuw that “Yaakob” was the name of Adnan’s father, for Tuw had been shouting out that she wanted to meet “Yaakob”.
Frustrated with the man, who repeatedly ask her to leave the scene, Tuw told him that he had a “big tummy” and should go on a diet.
