KUALA LUMPUR – Putrajaya did not submit requests for TikTok to take down videos criticising BlackRock’s perceived role in Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd’s (MAHB) privatisation exercise.
In refuting opposition MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman’s (Muar-Muda) accusation on the matter, Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching (Kulai-PH) said TikTok had opted to take such content down without a request from the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
“Content removal conducted by social media platform providers is subject to its considerations based on reports from users and requests from authorities,” Teo said in her winding-up speech for debates on Suhakam’s annual report and financial statement for 2021 and 2022.
“In this case, the content removal mentioned by Muar (Syed Saddiq) is inaccurate as the postings were taken down by TikTok without any requests from the MCMC.”
Yesterday, Syed Saddiq lambasted the government for supposedly failing to uphold media freedom principles.
The sole Muda MP also accused the government of playing a role in the removal of several of former health minister Khairy Jamaluddin’s TikTok posts on the BlackRock and MAHB issue.
Khairy had earlier posted a notice from TikTok regarding the removal of two video clips about the proposed MAHB privatisation deal involving New York-based Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), which is set to be acquired by Israel-linked BlackRock by the third quarter of this year.
In the videos, the expelled Umno man had questioned the supposed lack of transparency over the deal and raised doubts over GIP’s expertise in airport management.
On June 30, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil confirmed that neither he nor Teo had issued any instructions to the MCMC on the matter. – July 2, 2024