It claimed it had nothing to do with external pressure.

In a report by Malay Mail Online, Sinar Harian’s Chief Editor Abdul Jalil Ali explained that the change was procedural as a majority of columnists were retained for only “one or two years”.

Tee, he added, was among the columnists who had been writing for almost three years.

“There is no pressure from Umno or MCA or what. He has been given the freedom to write this long, no matter what he writes,” the portal quoted him as saying.

Earlier today, Ismaweb, the official organ for Muslim rights group Isma, reported that Tee’s weekly Monday column had been dropped since Sept 5.

It went on to claim that Tee was also prohibited from commenting on this.

Tee, a Muslim convert, is infamous for his views which tend to take on a racial slant. He is also known for the term “ultra kiasu”, which he coined to describe the perceived enemies of Islam as well as DAP and MCA.

In May, Tee surprised many by announcing his decision to quit MCA. Many were shocked that he was an MCA member.

This came as a result of the Chinese-based party’s stand against PAS President Abdul Hadi Awang’s move to introduce in Parliament a Private Member’s Bill to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act.

In one of his last columns, Tee claimed that the “ultra kiasu” were more involved in individual sports, rather than those that required teamwork.

Football and hockey, which require the strength of the “jamaah (congregation)”, no longer interested the non-Malays, Tee alleged, reasoning that it was because individual events were where the money was.

This led to Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin slamming Tee for insulting Malaysian athletes.