MCMC probing ‘a political leader’ for spreading fake news about PM
KUALA LUMPUR: A political leader is being investigated by the Malaysian Communications And Multimedia Commission (MCMC) for spreading fake news against the Prime Minister, says Tan Sri Annuar Musa.
“I was informed by the MCMC it has identified the individual who made the posting on his TikTok account, and they will be taking follow-up action,” the Communications and Multimedia Minister told reporters at a press conference in Parliament on Tuesday (July 19)
He confirmed that the individual was not a Member of Parliament but still involved in politics.
“He is not an MP although he holds (a) position in a political party,” he said.
Earlier, Annuar said the individual had edited part of Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s reply in the Dewan Rakyat on Monday (July 18) on subsidised cooking oil.
He said the individual edited the reply to give the impression that Ismail Sabri blamed petty traders such as pisang goreng (banana fritters) sellers for abusing subsidised cooking oil.
“This is totally against the spirit of what the prime minister said and such an act is an offence, as it is fake news.
“It was done with the intention of sowing hatred and eroding public confidence in the government,” he added.
On Monday (July 18), when responding to a question in Parliament, Ismail Sabri acknowledged that some small enterprises that were buying subsidised cooking oil for their businesses although the commodity was not allowed to be sold for commercial use.
“The Prime Minister gave a clear explanation in the Dewan Rakyat that the government doesn’t have the heart to take an approach which will cause hardship to these petty traders,” Annuar said.
On a related matter, Annaur said priority will be given in acting against those involved in large-scale abuse of subsidised cooking oil.
Among the targets for enforcement were producers, smugglers, packagers and resellers, he noted.
He added that the Special Task Force on Jihad Against Inflation is also considering a special tracking system or app to keep tabs on the distribution of subisdised cooking oil after it leaves manufacturing and packing plants.
The government has allocated some RM4bil this year to subsidise cooking oil sold in 1kg polybags.
The price is capped at RM2.50 per packet.
thestar
