M'sians rallying to get Queen to reactivate her Twitter account

PETALING JAYA: Malaysians from all walks of life are rallying behind a campaign on Twitter to try to get Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah to reactivate her account.

The #AmpunTuanku was Malaysia's top trending hashtag early on Thursday morning (Sept 12), before it was overtaken by "Permaisuri Agong" at 11am.

Tens of thousands of Twitter users expressed their sadness and pleaded with Tunku Azizah to change her mind and reactivate her account, @cheminahsayang.

The beloved and social media-friendly wife of Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah is believed to have deactivated her official Twitter account on Wednesday night (Sept 11).

Although no official statement was given as to why her account was deactivated, Twitter users think it was the result of cyberbullying.

"At a time of increasing racial polarisation and negativity, Tunku Azizah and Al-Sultan Abdullah have been the beacon of national hope and unity.

"I hope our beloved Queen will reconsider her decision. She brought a lot of joy to the rakyat with her tweets," said Twitter user Mikhail Hafiz.

Another user, Clarky, said: "I’m coming from a state where we don’t have royals, but having them as our King & Queen is a true blessing. They represent the unity of this country, a symbol to unite us."

Hazim Husaini expressed the hollowness felt by many Malaysians following the deactivation of Tunku Azizah's account, adding that: "We already miss your updates and your beautiful face on Twitter."

Twitter user Fatindaeyo questioned how some Malaysians could channel hatred towards someone "wonderful, adorable and humble", adding that the Queen didn’t deserve this.

Screenshots of those who made nasty remarks against Tunku Azizah are also making the round on Twitter, and even spilling over to other social media platforms such as Whatsapp and Facebook.

Previously during the Merdeka Day celebration, Tunku Azizah was criticised on social media for apparently taking too many photos during the parade, with some even going so far as to say that she was "behaving like a small child".

In response, the Raja Permaisuri Agong said she took photographs with her phone during the National Day parade because the King asked her to do so and she was merely following his command.

Many Malaysians were quick to come to her defence, proving that her candid and lovable tweets have quickly made her a figure many can relate to.