PM: Big mistake to ignore cyber-campaign
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today said his “biggest mistake” in disastrous elections was to ignore cyber-campaigning on the Internet which was seized by the opposition.
The powerful Barisan Nasional coalition suffered its worst-ever results in March 8 polls that left five states and a third of parliamentary seats in opposition hands.
The opposition, which was largely ignored by government-linked mainstream media, instead waged an enormously successful online campaign using blogs, news websites and SMS text messages.
“We certainly lost the Internet war, the cyber-war,” Abdullah said in in a speech to an investment conference, reports AFP.
“It was a serious misjudgement. We made the biggest mistake in thinking that it was not important,” he said.
“We thought that the newspapers, the print media, the television was supposed to be important, but the young people were looking at SMS and blogs.”
The comments are a major about-face for the government, which had vilified bloggers, calling them liars and threatening them with detention without trial under draconian internal security laws.
In line with promises to reform after the humiliating election results, Abdullah said the government would “respond effectively” and move to empower young Malaysians.
“It was painful … but it came at the right time, not too late,” he said.
Malaysia’s mainstream media are mostly part-owned by parties in the ruling coalition, and what was seen as biased coverage in the run-up to last month’s vote alienated voters and boosted demand for alternative news sources.
Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders ranks Malaysia 124 out of 169 on its worldwide press freedom index. It says mainstream media are “often compelled to ignore or to play down” opposition events.
Admit it, Bad-awi, you lost because the truth is not with you. And not only that but you have let to Zam to damn bloggers. What a double insult to the people!
Comment by wits0 — Tuesday, 25-03-2008 @ 18: 36.46
listen to the truth and do right things,fair to everyone ,then people like you, support you despite of anything that damn you,this is 1st lesson from my teacher when i was in primary school 6,Paklah seems forgoten or he is not learn ? UMNO youth ,those idiot were so arrogant that they talk and do whatever they like to,this is poison to Paklah and UMNO,and they poison this country too!
Comment by toomanycook — Tuesday, 25-03-2008 @ 20: 53.06
And even Melayus realize now that UMNO = Untuk Melayu No Otak only.
Not just protest votes, lah, but rejection a elitist system that keeps people poor and stupid….starting with the daily propaganda from the MSM noosepapers and trashy local TVs.
Comment by wits0 — Tuesday, 25-03-2008 @ 21: 10.53
UMNO caused all the other paties in the BN to suffer massive losses. No, it was not just losing the internet war. UMNO had become arrogant to the extreme, committing excesses with impunity and KJ was certainly a massive liability, especially when there was no apparent objection from BN to his schemes! Unless all the issues are sorted out as a whole, UMNO can forget about rejuvenation.
Comment by bayi — Tuesday, 25-03-2008 @ 22: 02.18
In other words, Badawi is saying that it will be business as usual. Only change is that DUMBNO will put more efforts into cyber propaganda. Sheesh..
Comment by Mycroft — Tuesday, 25-03-2008 @ 22: 34.02
Many more things Bodohwi don’t know and under-estimate the “power” of Rakyat and now ” the state Ruler/ Sultan”.
Bravo to HRH Sultan Mirzan , don’t give in to them !! why such oil producer state is still poor and meagre ?? no real development and all “fallacy and rethoric” there !! someone from KL is ruling the state , we all know that , HRH Sultan know that !! only PM don’t know ???
Comment by simsimsim — Tuesday, 25-03-2008 @ 22: 50.36
Quote:
Mr Khairy, Mr Badawi’s son-in-law (and a former intern at The Economist), has become what one observer calls a “walking,
talking, boasting” symbol of nepotism.”
http://www.bytebot.net/blog/archives/2008/03/15/the-economist-on-malaysia
Comment by wits0 — Tuesday, 25-03-2008 @ 23: 29.00
http://www.nst.com.my/CurrentNews/NST/Tuesday/NewsBreak/20080325184424/Article/Article/indexhtml
cock la……..
Comment by John Gandhi — Wednesday, 26-03-2008 @ 09: 04.53
human rights and equality can rule the country well,not only ‘hidup melayu’,wat about the others?are they ought to leave here or die in misery,Pak-lah shouldn’t keep quiet when his man spoke rude and waving a kris point to other citizen .now the kris is a symbolic with respect of our Royalty,wat if every one bring out and ragging in the street ?
Comment by toomanycook — Wednesday, 26-03-2008 @ 23: 04.37
I do not know when pak lah can be truthfully informed. Does he really know what was and is going on. Things that was happening, like demolition of temples and churches and snatching of cadavar on ther pretext of religious reason, against the constitutional rights of others races and religions goes against the promises of the forefathers. The PM is suppose to b the protector of the rights of every individual and every races and religion. If he can’t then he is not fit to be PM
Comment by jack — Saturday, 29-03-2008 @ 23: 52.14