PM Anwar Ibrahim’s image defaced on banner ahead of state elections

KUALA LUMPUR – As the state elections in Malaysia draw near, the political atmosphere is becoming increasingly charged, with incidents including the destruction of banners and flags.

On Monday (31 July), Michelle Ng Mei Sze, the incumbent state assembly person for Subang, shared a picture on her social media accounts of one such incident.

The photo depicted a banner featuring Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's face and the slogan 'Malaysia Madani', a policy framework and government slogan introduced by the PM during his tenure.

The banner had a noticeable hole defacing Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's image.

In her tweet, Ng expressed concern about the increasing aggression in her constituency, stating, "PMX got defaced. This is happening IN Subang Jaya. There is no safe seat. Many want the Unity Government to fail."

Ng's statement draws flak

In her post, Ng also took the opportunity to highlight the foreign companies her party has brought to the country.

"If you treasure the progress we have been bringing - Space X, Amazon Web Services, Tesla - are coming to Msia to create jobs for our children, vote PH on 12 Aug!"

However, her statement about attracting powerful foreign investors to the country sparked a swift response from internet users, with many criticising the idea of using these corporations as benchmarks for progress.

One Twitter user, @paws_nice, said, "SpaceX? Tesla? Is that your measuring stick for progress? PH is beyond salvageable."

Another user raised concerns about the exploitative practices of these foreign corporations.

"How are Space X, Tesla, and Amazon benchmarks of success when these corporations literally exploit their workers like it’s nothing?? Do we really wanna see that here in our country?” said @Dan7902.

Meanwhile, another user questioned the need for foreign investors to create jobs for Malaysians.

“Why do we need to depend on outsiders to create jobs for us? So much work to be done to reduce car dependency, and reduce the cost of living that is not revolved around high tech which we can absolutely do locally. Depending on FDIs is not sustainable,” tweeted @jaegar00.

The Subang constituency has been a stronghold for the opposition Parti Keadilan Rakyat since 2008, and later for the Pakatan Harapan coalition, which comprises PKR and the Democratic Action Party (DAP). It is considered a safe seat for PH during elections.

Ng, who represents the DAP, was elected as the Selangor state assembly person for the area in 2018.

In the upcoming election scheduled for 12 August, she will be facing stiff competition from two other candidates: Zayd Shaukat Ali from Muda and Gana Pragasam Sebastian from Perikatan Nasional-Bersatu.

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