Following Malaysiakini’s social media post blunder, which the UMNO Youth Chief had forgiven, another local newspaper outlet made a mistake in its headline.
And Dr Akmal Saleh was not happy about it.
In a now-deleted article, the newspaper claimed that “Hidup Anwar” was chanted by the crowd during the UMNO General Assembly (PAU 2026). Upon realising the blunder, Akmal immediately addressed the issue in a social media post last night (17 January), calling on the outlet to issue an apology.
“It was never ‘Hidup Anwar’, but ‘Hidup UMNO’.”
Akmal reaffirmed in his post that there were no chants of “Hidup Anwar” at PAU 2026 and cautioned the media outlet to apologise or face legal action.
“If you want to sell news, sell something truthful, not something defamatory!”
It did not take long for the media outlet to issue a formal apology, which was shared on its social media platforms.
In its apology, the newspaper explained that due to the audio translation, the chant sounded like “Hidup Anwar” when it was, in fact, “Hidup UMNO”. The subtitle also reflected the incorrect translation. Regardless, the post with the inaccurate headline has since been taken down.
In his latest Facebook post, Akmal acknowledged the apology but commented, “Shame on you.”
Also read: “A huge loss for Melaka” – Politician Comments on Dr Akmal’s Resignation as State Exco
