Former PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli has once again stirred heated debate after openly criticising the government and party communication machinery, which he claims has failed to manage public perception in a mature manner.
In his latest statement, Rafizi - previously dubbed the “king of formula” - said he is now being targeted with a new label, “bitter king”, by those unhappy with his critical views of the Madani administration.
However, he described the personal attacks as outdated tactics inherited from the BN era and PAS supporters, which he said are now being practised by PKR’s “ceplos-ceplos” - a colloquial Malay term used to describe sycophants.
“I’m already used to being criticised in all sorts of ways. I was once called the ‘king of formula’, now it’s ‘bitter king’.
“When what I raise are facts or arguments they can’t refute, they attack me personally. They say I’m vengeful, hurt, disappointed. Supposedly bitter,” he said on Facebook today.
Elaborating, Rafizi warned that personal attacks or the use of insulting labels will not be effective in the long run, especially in winning over fence-sitters and the younger generation (Gen Z).
He said these groups have no blind loyalty to any party and tend to swing their support at any time.
“Gen Z voters swing even more strongly. Today, they may like you; tomorrow, they may not.
“The best approach with fence-sitters and Gen Z is to provide clear explanations backed by factual arguments. They will make their own decisions,” the former minister stated.
PKR’s reliance on yes-men
The Pandan MP also launched sharp criticism at PKR’s internal dynamics.
He claimed there is a tendency among party leaders to use “yes-men” to sideline anyone with differing views by changing party systems and regulations.
“In PKR, if the leadership is uncomfortable with differing views, they take action, issue circulars, and impose disciplinary measures.
“If they feel it’s hard to control support, they change the system… everything can be altered to kick out those who don’t align with their views, because there are enough yes-men in the party willing to uphold whatever the leadership says,” he said sarcastically.
He further “schooled” Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil and the government’s Community Communications Department (J-kom) on how to properly steer public perception.
Rafizi advised the government’s communication machinery to stop relying on troll farms or fake accounts, and instead use qualitative and quantitative data to test narratives on social media.
“I want to give a tip to Fahmi and J-kom. Use data to identify which narratives are getting public response.
“If I say that perceptions of corruption are worsening under Madani, that has been tested quantitatively, qualitatively, and proven on the social media battlefield.
“The job of the government’s communication machinery is to improve public perception, not to label me ‘bitter king’,” he quipped.
He ended his statement with a sharp message to PKR’s communication strategy, which he claimed still depends on blind support.
“The only method that works is presenting arguments and facts that can counter the opposing side.
“But if PKR’s communication strategy continues to rely on yes-men, then good luck to all of you!” Rafizi added. - Mkini
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.