N-Day cash rewards prove 1 Malaysia’s failure, says Kit Siang

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 25 — Putrajaya’s use of cash rewards to draw a bigger crowd to its National Day events next week proves that Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s 1 Malaysia policy has failed to unite Malaysians, Lim Kit Siang said today.

The DAP adviser scoffed at what he labelled as a “rent-a-crowd” for the two events on the eve of National Day, saying it was a typical practice of the Barisan Nasional (BN) government to fork out money just to create massive attendance at its functions.

“This is a National Day event... it should be a spontaneous thing. When it becomes so artificial, it loses its meaning,” Lim (picture) told The Malaysian Insiderwhen contacted here.

The Ipoh Timor MP said that the need to pay participants to attend the functions was also a clear reflection of how the prime minister’s attempt at nation building had failed to unite Malaysians, despite his “1 Malaysia, People First, Performance Now” concept.

He said the often-promoted “1 Malaysia” platform was supposed to inspire Malaysians of all races and religions to come together, particularly for functions like National Day, which should spark a sense of patriotism in them.

“This in itself is a sad reflection of the failure of 1 Malaysia to aspire Malaysians to come together as one, especially during national events like these,” he said.

Lim said the BN government had been handling this year’s National Day events in the wrong way, pointing to the recent uproar over the use of “Janji Ditepati” (Promises Fulfilled) for the National Day theme.

“It has been so divisive. Instead of encouraging people to come together, it has had the opposite effect,” he said.

The Malaysian Insider reported this morning that Putrajaya is offering cash rewards and souvenirs to some 1,000 university students who agree to participate in the coming National Day celebrations here.

In an email from the Prime Minister’s Department’s National Unity and Integration unit sighted yesterday by The Malaysian Insider, the students are expected to wave flags or “do some simple flag formation” when the national anthem “Negaraku” or 1 Malaysia songs are played during two events on National Day eve — one at Dataran Merdeka in the morning and the second at the Bukit Jalil Stadium in the evening.

“A T-shirt is provided in the morning and a token of appreciation in cash is rewarded to each participant.

“For the evening event, no T-shirt is provided,” a department official said in the email addressed to a university here.

When contacted, the official told The Malaysian Insider that the participants are expected to attend five days of rehearsals from today, and will be paid RM20 and provided lunch for each day.

“So for five days, each participant will be paid RM100,” the official said.

Putrajaya’s offer of cash rewards to entice participants to its National Day celebrations will likely draw more flak from the federal opposition, particularly as it comes amid widespread criticism that the ruling BN pact has been politicising the national event for political reasons.

Already the Najib Cabinet’s chosen “55 Years of Independence, Promises Fulfilled” theme for National Day has come under heavy fire, with critics saying the contentious slogan was unsuitable as it reflected BN’s political agenda.

The “Janji Ditepati” logo and theme song have also attracted intense mockery and scrutiny, with claims that the latter was copied from an Indonesian gospel song.

Pakatan Rakyat (PR) leaders have accused the BN government of hijacking the national celebration to promote its political agenda and of abusing government resources for campaigning purposes.

In retaliation, the opposition pact of PKR, the DAP and PAS announced its own alternative theme ― “Sebangsa, Senegara, Sejiwa” (One Nation, One Country, One Soul) ― following suggestions from the public earlier this month.