{
  "id": 7282179,
  "title": "Pemimpin Umno gesa Norazli mohon maaf atas jenaka paderi, biarawati Katolik",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/14/pemimpin-umno-gesa-norazli-mohon-maaf-atas-jenaka-paderi-biarawati-7282179",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-14T07:59:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today-freemalays",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/bahasa/tempatan/2026/09/14/pemimpin-umno-gesa-mohon-maaf-atas-jenaka-paderi-biarawati-katolik"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Pak Salleh Said Keruak and Dr Akmal Saleh have urged Noorazli Said to apologize for his joke during the Umno General Assembly last Saturday. In Petaling Jaya, the two Umno leaders accompanied Tuaran MP Wilfred Madius Tangau in urging Umno Supreme Leader Noorazli Said to apologize due to the joke he made at the Umno General Assembly on Saturday. A veteran Umno supporter from Sabah, Salleh Said Keruak, expressed full agreement with Tangau's stance on the content said by Noorazli. \"Regardless of his intentions, a sexually-oriented joke involving a biarawati and a Catholic father should not be tolerated. Religious figures and institutions must always be respected. Our Umno leaders must openly and sincerely apologize. This is not a political matter; it is one of respect, responsibility, and acknowledging the boundaries that should not be crossed,\" he stated on Facebook. Dr Akmal Saleh also urged Noorazli to apologize openly while emphasizing that religion should never be used for jokes. \"Imagine if the joke about the father were directed at imams and the Muslim faithful. We would certainly be angry. Therefore, if we feel angry when treated this way, we should not treat others in the same manner,\" he added in his Facebook post. Salleh, a former Sabah Chief Minister, stated that Muslims, Christians, and adherents of other religions in the state have lived together in a spirit of mutual respect for centuries. \"The spirit of tolerance and harmony must be preserved. When something is wrong, we must have the courage to speak out, regardless of who is involved,\" he emphasized. During his introductory speech at Umno's presidential campaign on Saturday, Noorazli recounted a joke about a father driving a manual Proton Saga transporting a female biarawati. Noorazli allegedly used a phrase from Psalm 129 in the Bible, but the content does not actually appear in that chapter. Later today, Tangau, who is also a Tuaran MP and Adun Tamparuli, urged Noorazli to apologize to the Catholic community for the joke and the inaccurate reference to the Bible. The Catholic Lawyers Association of Kuala Lumpur has also said it will file a police report against Noorazli for the joke and urged him to withdraw his statement and sincerely apologize to the Catholic community, as well as refrain from using religious figures or texts as political rhetoric or jokes.",
  "summary": "Salleh Said Keruak berkata tokoh agama perlu sentiasa dihormati, manakala Dr Akmal Saleh menegaskan agama tidak sepatutnya dijadikan bahan jenaka.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Apologise to Catholics over crass joke, Sabah MP tells Sepang Umno chief",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/14/apologise-to-catholics-over-crass-joke-sabah-mp-tells-sepang-umno",
        "published": "2026-09-14T05:28:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}