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Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim also spoke out against claims that he was involved in an incident in which a member of his security personnel allegedly punched a deaf ride-hailing driver.
Soccer Football - Bundesliga - 1. FC Union Berlin v Bayer Leverkusen - Stadion An der Alten Forsterei, Berlin, Germany - April 6, 2024 1. FC Union Berlin coach Nenad Bjelica before the match REUTERS/Annegret Hilse
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JOHOR BAHRU: Johor’s regent has hit back against allegations he was behind the recent acid attack on a national footballer, and said there is a movement in Malaysia which aims to assassinate his character due to his outspokenness.
Responding to questions during a forum with local youths in Iskandar Puteri on Sunday (Jun 9), Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, also referred to as Tunku Mahkota Johor (TMJ), said “some parties” from outside the state have inaccurately framed his involvement in two issues reported by the media recently.
“What happened (to Faisal) we must condemn. Some people alleged that TMJ is the mastermind (behind these attacks)," said Tunku Ismail.
"If I want to finish off people, I have targets that are much bigger in this country, who steal the people’s money and make lives more difficult for the people, those who are responsible for the constitutional crisis - these are the people who must be destroyed. Not footballers.
“(Faisal) is just a footballer, it can’t be that the Selangor fans can’t think rationally, we JDT beat Selangor 4-0, 4-0 and 2-0 last season, he was playing. He is not a threat to me. He is a good player.”
He also stressed that certain parties were uncomfortable with his outspokenness on certain issues.
“There is a movement to character assassinate me because I am the most vocal prince in this country, and also because I cannot be bought, I cannot be nudged by the promise of projects to silence me. If the matter is true, I’ll say it's true, If it's untrue, I will say it's not true.
“I am not afraid, I am not threatened, my objective is to (help) Johor and the people of Johor,” he added.
Tunku Ismail was appointed Johor regent at the end of January after his father ascended the throne to become Malaysia’s Yang di-Pertuan Agong for a five-year term.
