The Malaysian Chinese Media Editors Association believes that anyone, including ministers, should not use the response 'I will call your editor-in-chief' even if they disagree with questions posed by the media during interviews.
The association pointed out that the minister's response has harmed the professionalism and dignity of journalists. Therefore, retracting the statement and apologizing would be the best way to quickly resolve this incident.
The Editors Association issued a statement regarding the incident in which the Minister of Housing and Local Government, Nga Kor Ming, was accused of intimidating a reporter. It stated that the journalist in question was merely carrying out their reporting duties and should be respected and accepted.
"If media and government interactions can be built on mutual respect and understanding, not only will this help improve the quality of public communication, it will also strengthen public trust in both the government and the media."
The statement noted that the association is concerned and regrets that this incident occurred. They hope the minister will meet with the editorial team of Utusan Malaysia as soon as possible to resolve this public relations crisis.
The association emphasized that although any interviewee indeed has the right to respond, the tone and manner in which one responds requires wisdom and skill; sometimes, being overly forceful can harm both others and oneself.
The statement noted that the Tourism Ministry previously boosted Malaysia's tourism market with the slogan 'Malaysia Truly Asia.' This time, using 'I Lite U' as the slogan for lighting up Kuala Lumpur's Golden Triangle streets is not wrong. The aim is to attract more visitors—a well-intentioned starting point. However, if met with humility when answering journalists' questions, the outcome would be completely different.