KUALA LUMPUR — Umno leaders have urged the Sepang division chief Datuk Noorazli Said to publicly apologise for a sexual joke he made involving Catholic clergy and a fake Bible verse, asking him to reflect on the meaning of mutual respect.
Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh said Noorazli should not do to others what he would find offensive himself.
“Imagine if the joke about a priest had instead involved an imam and Muslims. Surely we would be angry.
“If we would be offended when such things are said, then we should not do the same to others.
“Therefore, I urge (Noorazli) to apologise openly to all Malaysians,” Akmal said on Facebook.
Akmal added that religion should never be used as a subject of ridicule, stressing that the same standards of respect must apply regardless of faith.
He also stressed that Noorazli’s remarks did not reflect Umno’s position, describing them instead as the personal views of the Sepang division chief.
Sabah Umno treasurer Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak also took Noorazli to task, saying sexually suggestive jokes involving Catholic priests and nuns were unacceptable regardless of the intention behind them.
He said religious figures and religion itself must always be treated with respect, particularly in a multi-faith country such as Malaysia.
“In Sabah, Muslims, Christians and followers of other religions have lived together in mutual respect for a long time.
“This spirit of tolerance and harmony must continue to be preserved. When something is wrong, we must have the courage to say it is wrong, regardless of who did it,” he said, urging Noorazli to apologise.
Noorazli told a story during the Umno annual general assembly last Saturday that contained sexual innuendoes between a priest and a nun. He also quoted a verse from Psalm 129 which doest not exist.
Earlier, Tuaran MP and Tamparuli assemblyman Datuk Seri Wilfred Madius Tangau demanded Noorazli apologise to all Catholics as well as the larger Christian community, condemning his joke as “highly inappropriate and offensive”.
He said Noorazli should acknowledge his lapse in judgement, withdraw what he described as a false reference to Psalm 129 in the Bible, and issue an unconditional public apology.
Meanwhile, the Catholic Lawyers Society Kuala Lumpur (CLS) said it would lodge a police report over Noorazli’s remarks, which they say had the potential to cause disharmony and disrespect towards a religious community.
CLS said Noorazli’s remarks could have legal implications, including under Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, given that the speech was subsequently circulated on social media.
It also said the remarks demeaned Catholic priests by portraying them in an obscene and disrespectful manner.
“Such remarks, made before a large audience at a national political gathering, are wholly inappropriate and unbecoming of any elected representative or party leader,” it said.
Noorazli made the remarks on Saturday while debating the Umno president’s policy speech at the annual general assembly, when he recounted a joke involving a priest driving a manual Proton Saga who gave a nun a lift. – September 14, 2026