RTM director-general Norhayati Ismail has clarified that the state-owned station has no issues with the word 'reformasi' in the rock song ‘Panik’, which was claimed to be the reason for the song being‘banned’.
Rather, she said the station is concerned about the word celakamu(your cursed mouth) in the lyrics and therefore had "not recommended" it for broadcast.
"We did not ban it, but do not recommend it... We have not reached any decision yet unless (Bunkface) wants to change the word," she said.
The word is heard towards the end of the four-minute song:
Ku selalu berasingan jauh, dan kubiarkan mulut celakamu.
Kan kutunggu-tunggu, kebenaran ditentukan ditentukan padamu, padaku, pada mereka yang setuju.
(I often stay away and leave your cursed mouth alone. I’ve waited and waited for truth to be told by you, by me, and by those who agree.)
Norhayati said RTM will not ‘bleep’ the word because this would interfere with the listening experience.
The band’s guitarist and singer, Shamsul Annuar Mohd Baharum, had earlier denied that the song is linked to the political movement that culminated in the formation of PKR.
What the song promotes
Bunkface’s manager Mohd Rafie Saruddin said he had been informed by a RTM officer that the song cannot be aired because of the words ‘reformasi’ and ‘celakamu’.
He said Bunkface would not change the lyrics or appeal the decision until they receive a satisfactory explanation from RTM.
On the meaning of the song, Mohd Rafie claimed that it is intended to spark interest in politics among the youth.
"(Bunkface) was thinking about what is happening today, about why youth are disinterested in politics and think it is dirty ... If this continues, who is going to vote in the future?" he said when contacted.
The three-member rock band with nearly 800,000 Facebook fans has won several awards.
These include the prestigious Malaysian Music Industry Award's Kembara category for promoting local music abroad; Best Rock Band award; and Berita Harian's Most Popular Artist Award in the group category last year.
Listen to the song :
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