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Reform descends into anarchy as chairman flounces out – and it’s all those pesky Muslims fault

Reform chairman Zia Yusuf has sashayed out of the party – after he called Reform MP Sarah Pochin’s parliamentary question on banning the burqa “dumb.” In a classic show of Reform policy cohesion and unity, Yusuf’s remarks come as Pochin received firm pushback over her Islamophobic question.

Yusuf flounced out of Reform, saying trying to get it elected was “not a good use of his time”.

During Prime Minister’s Question Time, Pochin used the opportunity to ask her first ever question as an MP with the following nonsense:

Given the prime minister’s desire to strengthen strategic alignment with our European neighbours, will he in the interests of public safety, follow the lead of France, Denmark, Belgium and others and ban the burqa?

At the time, other MPs gasped at her question and Starmer himself said:

I’m not going to follow her down that line.

Reform eating itself

Now, Reform chairman Zia Yusuf has taken to social media to have a go at Pochin’s question:

It’s worth noting that Yusuf is responding to a question from noted shithouse, Katie Hopkins. And, despite being chairman of the Reform party, many commenters online will often refer to Yusuf’s full name (Muhammad Ziauddin Yusuf) as a racial dogwhistle. Yusuf, presumably in a doomed attempt at ingratiation to his fellow racists, goes by the nickname ‘Zia.’ Hopkins, however, addresses him as “Mohammed” – despite his actual name being Muhammed. You hang in there though Zia, you’ll definitely win these twats round.

And, in an earlier tweet, Yusuf had claimed that it’s not actually Reform policy to pursue a burqa ban:

Busy with UK DOGE? Great. You get on that Yusuf, it’ll definitely go really well. Just like the original DOGE which has been deemed a:

colossal failure.

Reform: a hatred of Muslims

However, worry not Sarah Pochin. Just because your party is busy fighting amongst itself, we haven’t forgotten you. Pochin won a by-election in Runcorn by just 6 votes last month. Her first question was apparently a specific choice:

Runcorn is administered by Halton Borough Council – just 3.5% of its population is non-white. 1 in 4 children in Runcorn live in poverty, yet apparently Pochin seems to think Muslims are the problem. This wasn’t lost on commenters on social media:

One person said they’d lived in Runcorn for 20 years and hadn’t ever seen anyone there wearing a burqa:

It’s almost as though Pochin is reaching for Muslims as a handy scapegoat without actually doing much about the real problems her constituents face. Given she only won her by-election by 6 votes, you might think she’d be focused on actual issues people in Runcorn have to deal with. But, why do that when you can ask a fear-mongering question about Muslim women?

Faux concern

One commenter claimed to simply be a concerned party:

To stand against gender oppression? Maybe Reform would be better off sorting out their own policies and in-fighting instead of pretending to care one bit about the rights of Muslim women? What is this, 2001? Does anyone genuinely believe that these racists care about the rights of women? How many times do we have to explain how Islamophobic and abhorrent it is to claim that Muslim women are innately oppressed for choosing to wear a scarf?

As for public safety? Muslims are heavily policed and surveilled as it is. Spare us the faux concern Sammy.

Grassroots organisation Save Our Citizenships had a swift takedown ready:

Orientalism: right at home in Reform

No Reform MP cares one bit about the safety or rights of Muslim women. Pochin’s question and her supporters online are drawing on one of the most British traditions in modern memory: using Muslim women as symbols of oppression to win points in a race war only they’re fighting. Pochin’s question is a disgrace. Reform’s in-fighting and murky approach to policies reflects a party more interested in getting headlines than actually making anyone’s lives better.

Amongst the media circus around Reform, it would be helpful if, for once, mainstream media could see these attacks on Muslims for what they are. Pochin may well want to dehumanise Muslim women by suggesting stripping them of their burqas, but it’s an obvious gambit to normalise Islamophobia.

Go sort your own shit out, you daft racists.

Featured image via the Canary

By Maryam Jameela

This post was originally published on Canary.