KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 20 — A coalition of pro-Barisan Nasional (BN) non-governmental organisations (NGOs) announced today it will organise a rally to counter the one planned by electoral watchdog Bersih 2.0 in the city centre from August 29 till Aug 30.
In a statement today, the coalition’s leader Zulkarnain Mahdar claimed that a counter-rally is needed to instil ‘love Malaysia’ messages, to ‘neutralise’ Bersih’s alleged effort to “provoke hatred towards the country”, through the use of slogans such as #TangkapNajib and #NajibRasuah.
He said that a rally known as ‘Himpunan Solidariti Untukmu Malaysia’ will be held in front of the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC), with an expected crowd of 10,000 people.
“It must be remembered that Bersih’ slogans … could instigate provocation, by angering the rakyat via messages such as #TangkapNajib and #NajibRasuah over the RM 2.6 billion fund,” Zukarnain claimed.
“As for now, there is no one specific law that prohibits political parties from receiving political funding and 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) is also currently under investigations by the necessary authorities.
“The question here is, what is their justification for such slogans?” Zulkarnain asked, adding that no one should be accused of being guilty before being charged in court.
The Bersih 4 rally scheduled for the end of the month will be an overnight rally with attendees camping at Dataran Merdeka for 36 hours to demand free and fair elections while protesting Putrajaya’s handling of the 1MDB controversy. The Bersih march to Dataran Merdeka will to start from five gathering points including Sogo, Pasar Seni, Dataran Maybank, Brickfields and the National Mosque.
Zulkarnain claimed the counter rally is a reaction to the opposition’s “twisted influence on the people”. He said the coalition will also hand over a memorandum to a representative of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to express their loyalty to the nation and the King, after a march with posters and banner proclaiming, “#KamiSayangMalaysia”.
