KUALA LUMPUR: Academician Ridhuan Tee Abdullah should stop making heinous remarks and reflect on his mistakes, said Minister in Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong (pic).

Criticising Tee’s comments that Malaysian Olympic medal winners were only eyeing monetary re­­wards, Dr Wee said these incentives were put in place since the Games in Beijing in 2008.

He said there were Malays who cried with joy when singles shuttler Datuk Lee Chong Wei defeated China’s Lin Dan in the semi-finals and then shed tears of sadness when he lost to Chen Long in the final.

“Because of Lee, Malaysians were uni­ted. It is not something we see every day and should be encou­raged instead of accusing the Malaysian Chinese athletes of only competing for money,” he said.

Drawing attention to the close ties between Lee and his former coach Misbun Sidek, Dr Wee said their relationship was one that crossed racial boundaries.

“Ridhuan Tee will not understand this. When Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin played at the Thomas Cup finals, who did Malaysians support? Definitely not China or other countries but Malaysia.

“We did not pay attention to diver Pandelela Rinong’s skin colour when she won the silver medal but felt proud of her achievement,” he said.

Later, MCA Youth lodged a report against Tee over his remarks.

Its secretary-general Datuk Leong Kim Soon and a few party members lodged the report at the Dang Wangi police headquarters at about 3.15pm.

Leong said the report was made so that police would investigate Tee’s statement and take necessary action against him.

In his column in a Malay daily, Tee said sports had become a business as well as a means to gain popularity.

He wrote that “ultra-kiasu” or “mercenary” athletes competed for monetary rewards rather than for patriotic reasons and were driven towards individualistic sports and not those requiring teamwork.

-The Star-