KUALA PERLIS, April 27 — All parties are reminded to be careful and not to play the issue of race, religion, and royalty (3R), especially on social media platforms, throughout the Kuala Kubu Baharu by-election campaigning period, which began today.
Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said he had instructed the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to increase monitoring to detect any illegal posts.
“MCMC has also said they will not hesitate to call anyone who violates the laws of our country, specifically in relation to the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998.
“If necessary, they can be summoned to have their statement recorded, have their devices confiscated and be brought to court.
“I hope Malaysians take a lesson from the series of cases that have been brought to court, and those who put extreme comments can be fined, and if they fail to pay the fine, then the punishment is imprisonment,” he said.
Fahmi was speaking to the press after attending the Jiwa Madani programme in Kampung Seberang Ramai today.
He added that parties involved in the by-election are urged to campaign in a healthy manner, use facts, and avoid touching on sensitive matters.
Should the latter occur, MCMC will immediately call those involved and it will not only be those who upload related content but also those who put in outrageous comments.
“So be careful, be moderate in our campaigning… the important thing is that we want the people, especially the voters of Kuala Kubu Baharu state constituency, to have the best choice by May 11,” Fahmi said.
The by-election, which sees a four-cornered contest involving candidates from Pakatan Harapan, Perikatan Nasional, Parti Rakyat Malaysia, and an Independent, was held following the death of its incumbent Lee Kee Hiong, 58, on March 21 due to cancer.
The Election Commission (EC) set the voting day for the by-election on May 11, with early voting on May 7.
Earlier, at the event, Fahmi presented the appointment letters for the establishment of the Madani Community to 45 community leaders and representatives throughout the state of Perlis, involving 15 state constituencies.
He said they hope the appointment will help to disseminate information about government policies to the grassroots so that the people get accurate information.
“For example, we created a third account for EPF (Employee Provident Fund) to enable people to spend wisely while using the contributions that have been made to EPF.
“The review of the Public Service Remuneration Scheme that will be announced by the Prime Minister (Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim) from May 1 onwards, and there are several other efforts that we see the Prime Minister working on as part of what I call the Prime Minister’s mission for Malaysia, ” Fahmi said.
The minister also hopes that the Madani Community can be the eyes and ears of the government to ensure that information related to government policies reaches the grassroots level.
— Bernama
