KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 22): Opposition Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman Mahathir Mohamad said on Monday (Jan 22) he had no intention of insulting nasi lemak sellers or drivers for ride-sharing services, following the furore over his remarks last week where he criticised the trend of tertiary graduates earning a living by taking up the two professions.

Dr Mahathir said he was merely stating the obvious when he said graduates were turning to such jobs because there was a lack of proper career opportunities.

“This is not a question about insulting anyone,” the former prime minister said during a Facebook Live session at his office in Putrajaya.

“There are those who sell nasi lemak because that is how they support themselves. And, there are those who are forced to drive Uber as they have no choice.”

Last Wednesday, Dr Mahathir said Malaysians cannot be proud of the trend of graduates selling nasi lemak or becoming Uber drivers as such developments suggested that Malaysians were now struggling to get by with just a single job, rather than any indicator of growing entrepreneurship.

His remarks were condemned by the ruling United Malays National Organisation (Umno) and its senior partner, the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA).

Umno supreme council leader Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the move by fresh university graduates venturing into nasi lemak business or become Uber drivers showed their creativity in producing job opportunities and not merely hoping to be under the employment of others.

Mr Ismail said the choice of jobs by the present generation should not be considered as the failure of the government to provide employment opportunities.

Meanwhile, MCA youth vice-chief Nicole Wong accused Dr Mahathir of “belittling graduates”, noting that the veteran leader had professed to hawking banana fritters when he was young.

Still, Dr Mahathir on Monday said it is “a waste” if graduates are skilled in one profession while they are forced to work in another just because of lack of employment opportunities in their chosen fields.

“Because there are no opportunities due to the government’s economic policies, they are forced to make a living selling nasi lemak or driving Uber. It is not by choice,” he said.

The chairman of opposition Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) said only the demented would go to universities to study engineering and medicine, only to return to low-paying jobs.

He said graduates who turned to such jobs did so because they could not secure employment in their chosen fields.

“For those who do it by choice, we wish them all the best. But, many are forced to do so not because of their own mistakes,” he said.

“They are paying for the government policies that say gross domestic product and investments are high, but the people are unemployed. Because of this unemployment, they are forced to sell nasi lemak and be Uber drivers.”