A-B-C-D-GST, now you know your DAP, says BN

A BN spokesman questions the Penang chief minister for dishing out political propaganda to children.

VIDEO INSIDE

Lim Guan Eng, seen here on stage singing along the so-called GST song at an event to officiate a state education programme.

GEORGE TOWN: Two days after a DAP MP belted out a parody of the alphabet song in Parliament to mock the goods and services tax (GST), Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng today joined a sing-along of the song with residents of a flat here, drawing condemnation from Barisan Nasional (BN).

A video making rounds on Facebook shows the DAP secretary-general dancing to the tune of the song as it was being played on a large screen complete with lyrics.

“A-B-C-D-GST, prices rise for you and me, mesti makan maggi mee, semua kena GST, bayar untuk 1MDB,” goes the song.

Penang CM Lim Guan Eng sits among students at an event to officiate a state tuition programme today.

Lim was officiating a free tuition class initiative by the Penang state government under its youth empowerment programme Penggerak Komuniti Muda Pulau Pinang (Peka) at the Mutiara Idaman 2 flats.

Some 1,000 students across Penang are currently under the Peka programme, offering tuition classes for UPSR and SPM students.

The so-called “GST song” was recently sung in Dewan Rakyat by Kulai MP Teo Nie Ching, to drive home her point that Malaysians were burdened by the consumer tax.

But BN’s strategic communications deputy chief Eric See-To said Lim was guilty of indoctrinating children with political propaganda.

“This is the type of politician who will get slammed in foreign countries if he pulled such a stunt in overseas countries,” he said in an immediate response.

“Imagine indoctrinating young children in public with political propaganda like this? How much lower can you go?” he asked.

Last October, opposition leaders condemned Umno after a video went viral showing teachers and students of a school in Putrajaya singing the Umno song.

A banner with the words “Hidup Umno, Hidup Melayu” was also displayed on a stage where the event took place.

Meanwhile, DAP’s Bukit Mertajam MP defended the use of the song, saying it was a fact that GST had pushed up prices.

“Was Bank Negara engaging in political propaganda when it said the same thing?” he asked.

Sim said there was a tendency to view BN propaganda as non-partisan, adding that the line between the coalition and government was blurred.

“I think we need to go beyond the old thinking that supporting or repeating BN’s message is considered ‘supporting government’ and therefore is seen to be less partisan or less political compared to supporting the message of BN’s competitor.

“Besides, the song doesn’t say undi DAP nor does it carry any political logo,” he told FMT. -FMT