KUALA LUMPUR – Former health minister Khairy Jamaluddin has hit back at critics who slammed him for not speaking up on the assault on a disabled e-hailing driver by the bodyguard of a royal member.
The former Umno man, who hosts the popular socio-political podcast series “Keluar Sekejap” alongside former Umno information chief Shahril Sufian Hamdan, sarcastically told netizens that he and Shahril were not the right avenue for the matter as they were not in government.
This came in response to accusations that Khairy “did not have the balls” to speak on the matter due to his ties with Johor Regent Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim.
“We’re going to talk about this now to prove that we are fine with talking about anything. There’s nothing that we won’t talk about, other than personal family matters.
“(However), I do want to ask, to those who took to (social media platform) X, why are you calling us out? We’re not even the elected government, not the police, not the home minister (or even) the transport minister who oversees Grab-related matters.
“So, if we have to answer, since you all are hounding for KS to respond, we might as well be the government, since the government is not saying anything.
“I want to lay all the cards on the table. But this doesn’t mean that I don’t have my own stance or that I did not convey my views to TMJ (Johor Crown Prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim), which I did.”
Khairy also emphasised that both he and Tunku Ismail had spoken on the matter privately.
“But what I wanted to point out is that, I understand, optically, this matter seems unfair because of what has transpired.
“(Either way), an investigation must be conducted (because) this man, Ong Ing Keong (the e-hailing driver), deserves justice, whether he is punched intentionally, without provocation, or without the person who allegedly assaulted him having done so when there’s no need to defend himself. There must be justice and appropriate action.
“I’ve conveyed this to Tunku Ismail, and he has given a statement, which I think we need to read and digest because he said he wasn’t aware of the situation. He had informed me and said in his statement that he wanted an investigation conducted into this matter.
“So Tunku Ismail is willing and wants the investigation to be done thoroughly so that justice can be given to any party, including Ong, and the former hopes that the authorities will take legal action and give justice to the victim.”
Khairy added that the best course of action is to allow authorities space to conduct their investigation. He urged the Inspector-General of Police to look into revising standard operating procedures for outriders, as there have been instances in the past where the outriders were hostile towards the public.
“I’ve witnessed hostile outriders, especially when Pak Lah (Tun Abdullah Badawi) was the prime minister. Pak Lah himself reprimanded such behaviour and said there was no need to be hostile,” Khairy said, referring to the former prime minister who is also his father-in-law.
“(However), I appreciate the police’s job, especially when it comes to the Special Action Unit (UTK) outriders. It’s a very high-pressure job, and we need to understand (this). Perhaps the police can explain (the outriders’ job scope) to the public.”
He also pointed out that, generally, only the prime minister, deputy prime minister, and home minister would have their own team of outriders.
“We need to also understand that the royals have their own convoy, different outriders, and different levels of protection required.”
On May 28, Ong was allegedly assaulted by a VIP escort in front of the St Regis Hotel here, where he also claimed that his dashboard camera was seized and footage of the incident erased.
He added that he was given RM800 as compensation after being pressured into dropping his initial police report.
On May 31, Tunku Ismail released a statement, saying that he was informed about the alleged assault a day after the incident occurred and had immediately told the security escort team to cooperate with the investigation.
On the same day, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain said that an investigation had been launched and emphasised the police force’s commitment to integrity and defending justice by ensuring the perpetrators were held accountable.
However, on May 31, Ong and members of Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) held a press conference, claiming that a palace representative was present at the police station when he lodged a report. – June 4, 2024