A video clip of a man tearing down ruling coalition Barisan Nasional’s flags in the TTDI neighborhood of Kuala Lumpur has gone viral, after he was captured throwing the discarded flags to the ground yesterday afternoon.
The 41-second clip shows a man taking the flags down along Jalan Burhanuddin Helmi. Aware that he is being filmed, he then mutters expletives and shows the camera the universal sign for telling one to mind one’s own business, aka flipping the bird, aka the middle finger.
Police have confirmed that they have received three separate reports over the incident, one coming from the person who took the video, another from the person who put up the flags, and the other from an Umno Youth representative.
Authorities are asking anyone (especially the snitches) with any information on the man in the video to come forward.
While the man’s actions could be investigated for criminal mischief and damage, it is worth mentioning that campaigning via political flag raising before an election campaign period is illegal. However, the offense is not a police matter, and instead one that is deferred to Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL). Permission from local council is also required before any flags get hoisted.
The political arena is heating up, with the dissolution of parliament, cash offers to voters from the PM and the de-registration of opposition parties due to technicalities all happening over the last few days.
Get yourselves a cold glass of water, because it’s about to heat up.
