Student activist, Akmal set for July 1 debate after caricature burning
Umno Youth chief Dr Akmal Saleh had criticised students who burned a caricature of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim at an anti-corruption rally on Saturday. (Bernama pic)
PETALING JAYA : A student activist has taken up Umno Youth chief Dr Akmal Saleh's offer to meet for a debate after the latter criticised students who recently burned a caricature of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, describing them as 'cowardly and stupid'.
Akmal yesterday hit out at rally-goers who set a caricature of Anwar on fire at an anti-corruption rally in Kota Kinabalu on Saturday, labelling such acts disrespectful.
He had issued an invitation to any student unhappy with his remarks to arrange a meeting with him.
In response, student activist Fakhrurrazzi Khairur Rijal today said he had accepted Akmal's invitation and had agreed to his proposal to meet at 9pm on July 1 for a debate.
'The dignity of students and the freedom of expression must be defended. We are not afraid to speak the truth,' said the National Youth Federation of Malaysia coordinator in a statement.
Youth NGO Mandiri and student group Himpunan Advokasi Rakyat Malaysia are helping coordinate the event, with the venue to be announced on their official social media channels.
Fakrurrazzi also said he remains open to the head of PKR Youth, Kamil Munim, joining the July 1 debate alongside Akmal.
He said the meeting was crucial to defend the dignity of students and their right to freedom of expression, which had been increasingly challenged by the rhetoric of political leaders.
Kamil, who is also Anwar's aide at the finance ministry, previously criticised the student protesters in Sabah who burned Anwar's caricature, describing the incident as excessive and rude.
The Gempur Rasuah 2.0 rally, organised by several Universiti Malaysia Sabah students, ended with the burning of the caricature.
More than 100 people took part in the protest to call for action over the Sabah water department scandal.
Police are investigating the burning of the caricature under the Sedition Act and Penal Code.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Free Malaysia Today
an hour ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Decision to review 13MP not made in haste, says Fahmi
Communications minister Fahmi Fadzil said the prime minister had asked all ministries to study the draft of the 13MP and submit their feedback to the economy ministry. (Bernama pic) KUALA LUMPUR : The government's decision to review the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP) is not a hasty reaction, but one that has gone through a discussion process over the past two weeks, said communications minister Fahmi Fadzil. Fahmi said the discussions began with a draft presented by the economy ministry's secretary-general to the Cabinet. 'We've actually discussed this. I mentioned (previously) that the prime minister had issued a directive to review the draft presented by the economy ministry's secretary-general. 'Any policy, programme or decision must first be presented at a Cabinet meeting. So, on Friday last week (June 20), the prime minister requested all ministries to study the draft and submit their feedback to the economy ministry,' the government spokesman said at a press conference after launching the Nadi Aspirasi Nasional Bersama Anak Muda programme organised by the community communications department (J-Kom) here today. Following that, he said, a special Cabinet meeting was held last Monday to review the feedback from the ministries. 'During the meeting, it was found that many matters raised by the ministries needed to be considered by the economy ministry in drawing up the 13MP document. 'That was one of the reasons why, at last Wednesday's Cabinet meeting – the latest one – it was decided that finance minister II Amir Hamzah Azizan would take on the duties and functions of the economy minister,' he said. Former economy minister Rafizi Ramli was reported to have questioned the government's move to review the 13MP, calling it a hasty response to social media criticism. This followed chief secretary to the government Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar's announcement yesterday that Amir had been tasked with 'reviewing and revamping' the 13MP, while concurrently performing the duties and functions of the economy minister, effective immediately. The 13MP is scheduled to be tabled in Parliament on July 31.
Free Malaysia Today
an hour ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Telegram didn't comply with many content removal requests, says Fahmi
Communications minister Fahmi Fadzil said MCMC had flagged 1,188,528 pieces of harmful content across social media platforms as of June 24. KUALA LUMPUR : Telegram failed to comply with many of the requests made by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission to remove harmful content on the platform, says communications minister Fahmi Fadzil. Among all social media platforms, he said, Telegram has the lowest rate of compliance – less than 50% – to MCMC's requests to remove content. 'I have ordered MCMC to call Telegram for a meeting next week to discuss the issue,' he told reporters following an event at Pantai Dalam this morning. On June 19, MCMC filed a civil suit against Telegram and two of its channels for allegedly spreading harmful content that could erode trust in public institutions and threaten social order. MCMC said the two channels – 'Edisi Siasat' and 'Edisi Khas' – were found to have published content that violated provisions under the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (CMA). 'This marks the first such action taken against a social media platform provider, particularly since Telegram holds an application service provider (class) licence. 'The move follows Telegram's serious failure to address content that has been repeatedly reported to it, despite multiple negotiation and cooperation efforts by MCMC,' it said. Fahmi said that as of June 24, MCMC had flagged 1,188,528 pieces of harmful content across various social media platforms. However, only 173,642 of those requests were complied with. 'Of this number, 51% of the content removed were online gambling ads, while 24% were online scams. 'We will take strict action to ensure Malaysians do not become victims of cybercrime,' he said. He said MCMC can only make requests, but the platforms themselves have to do what is necessary to ensure the content cannot be accessed in the country.
Free Malaysia Today
an hour ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Rafizi's criticisms dragging PKR backwards, says report
Rafizi Ramli had resigned from the Cabinet after losing to Nurul Izzah Anwar in the race for the post of PKR deputy president. (Bernama pic) PETALING JAYA : The accusations levelled by former economy minister Rafizi Ramli at Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim are dragging PKR backward, says Berita Harian group editor Zulkifli Jalil. In a recent opinion piece, Zulkifli said that Rafizi, since resigning from the Cabinet, had seemed to be 'burning the mosquito net to kill the mosquito', using a Malay idiom to describe how the former minister's criticisms will harm the party's image. 'On Friday (June 20), Rafizi started his first podcast, 'Yang Berhenti Menteri', after his exit from the Cabinet. 'He is still making accusations. He likes to make his own conclusions and point fingers at the prime minister,' he said. Zulkifli criticised Rafizi for publicly going against PKR, pointing out that the party took 25 years to reach where it is today. 'Why burn the mosquito net to kill a mosquito? Rafizi's actions seem to be dragging PKR backward,' he said. Rafizi had resigned from the Cabinet after losing to Nurul Izzah Anwar in the race for the post of PKR deputy president. In his podcast, he said it was better for him to resign than to become a 'lame duck' minister or a 'yes man'. Rafizi claimed it was clear he had lost the prime minister's confidence, making it impossible to carry out reforms effectively. However, Zulkifli said Rafizi had been rash to resign, as he still had the support of the public despite losing party support. He pointed out that Rafizi had not been asked or pressured to resign, and the prime minister himself had asked him to stay. Zulkifli said there was no need for a minister to hold a party post, and that Rafizi had a good track record as economy minister with initiatives such as the People's Income Initiative, Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) and the 13th Malaysia Plan. He added that Rafizi should have calmed down and asked himself if resigning would have benefited the party. Zulkifli said winning and losing is common in politics. 'Politics is very dynamic. One cannot be petty in politics. A politician must resist criticism. He cannot be thin-skinned (telinga nipis),' he added.
