KUALA LUMPUR – Perikatan Nasional (PN) Youth chief Ahmad Fadhli Shaari has hit back against unity government leaders for protesting his proposal to use different themes and logos for the National Day celebrations in PN-led states.
In defending his suggestion, Fadhli, who is also Pasir Mas MP, said the Selangor government led by Pakatan Harapan (PH) had last year used an alternative logo and theme during its state-level celebrations last year.
He also highlighted how in 2012, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who was then Pakatan Rakyat (PR) chief and opposition leader, advocated for opposition-held states to have separate National Day themes.
“Ten years ago, the prime minister today (Anwar) had fought for a different National Day theme (in opposition states) when he felt that the theme (proposed by the federal government then) had political elements.
“Even the Selangor state government under PH’s rule last year had introduced a separate logo and slogan for National Day celebrations,” Fadhli said in a TikTok video posted yesterday.
For the record, Pakatan Rakyat, which consisted of PKR, PAS and DAP, had later on agreed to drop the idea and went along with the federal government’s 55th Merdeka Day theme of Sebangsa, Senegara, Sejiwa.
Besides that, Fadhli said his proposal for an alternative theme had been born due to PN Youth’s belief that the slogan chosen by the federal unity government – Malaysia Madani: Tekad Perpaduan, Penuhi Harapan – has “political connotations”.
“The theme (chosen by the federal government) has words that were used (by PH and unity government ally Barisan Nasional) during political campaigns for the recent state elections, such as ‘Madani’, ‘perpaduan’ and ‘harapan’.
“Even if the words have good meaning, they have been politicised throughout the course of elections campaigning,” Fadhli said.
He added that if the federal government wishes to unite the people, it would be better to use a more “neutral” theme that can be accepted by all citizens regardless of their political beliefs.
This, he said, is why he had put forth the theme of Teguh Muafakat Malaysia Sejahtera for PN states – Perlis, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu – instead of using words such as “bersih” and “stabil”, which are part of PN linchpin Bersatu’s catchphrase.
Yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had said that matters concerning patriotism, such as the National Day logo and theme, should not be politicised.
Besides drawing flak from unity government leaders, Fadhli’s suggestion has also been criticised by Bersatu deputy president Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu and PAS deputy president Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man.
Both leaders told Scoop that the proposal was never discussed at the coalition nor party level and is instead Fadhli’s own “personal view”.
Netizens had also lambasted Fadhli’s “stupid” suggestion, with most expressing their concern over how the “rude” move could lead to more extreme politics in the nation if authorities fail to take preventative action. – August 21, 2023