KKMM to investigate offensive tweets linked to MCMC account

Saifuddin says KKMM will not compromise, claiming that it will act transparently in addressing the issue. — Bernama

PETALING JAYA: The Communications and Multimedia Ministry (KKMM) will be investigating the issue of indecent tweets that have been linked to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission’s (MCMC’s) official Twitter account.

“I have instructed the KKMM secretary general (Datuk Seri Mohammad Mentek) to conduct a comprehensive investigation from all angles, including the procedure for operating the Twitter account,” its minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah said in a statement.

“If an offence is found, stern action will be taken against the party responsible, regardless of whether the person is still serving at MCMC or not."

Saifuddin said KKMM will not compromise, claiming that it will act transparently in addressing the issue.

The offensive tweets, which originated from 2014, were screenshot and posted by users, causing them to go viral on social media and the hashtag #MCMC to trend on Tuesday (Jan 12).

Most said they were riled by the regulatory body’s last post asking social media users to practise good manners when posting about the movement control order and Emergency declaration.

In the post, MCMC said it will monitor social media to curb the spread of misinformation in regards to the 3Rs – royalty, race and religion.

The issue was also highlighted by lawyer Syahredzan Johan who demanded that MCMC and KKMM provide an explanation for the obscene tweets.

Syahredzan, who is also Lim Kit Siang’s political secretary, asked how the Twitter account was started, as a man from Pahang had claimed that it was originally owned by him.

He pointed out that Nazrul Hakim (@NazruiHakim) had tweeted that the account belonged to him before he sold it to another person who then sold it to MCMC.

If it was true that MCMC had taken over a personal account, he wanted to know the amount paid and if it was undertaken through a proper and transparent government procurement process.

MCMC deactivated the account on Tuesday after the offensive tweets surfaced, and later on that day it said in a statement that the account was deactivated because it was hacked.

It also said the public should not be influenced by the “suspicious, ugly and defamatory messages that have been uploaded through the account, which are not from MCMC”.

Prior to deactivation, the account had over 70,000 followers.