January 06, 2022, 02:49 PM
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One of the youngest members of parliament (MPs) in Malaysia, Syed Saddiq, has hit out at critics who slammed his attire during his recent vaccination appointment.
A Malaysian news site, MYNEWSHUB, recently took to Twitter to question the politician's choice of attire, "Can't (you) wear clothes that are more suitable to get (your) third dose?"
"(...) This is the kind of (person) that some young kids look up to," the site added.
Kauorang tengoklah perangai dia ni... Takleh pakai baju yg sesuai sikit nak ambik 3rd dose?.. Camni yg segilintir budak muda sanjung pic.twitter.com/fEZ5QtPZYD
— MYNEWSHUB (@mynewshub) January 4, 2022
The tweet was in response to Syed Saddiq's post on Instagram, where he shared about getting the booster shot of the Covid-19 vaccine, and talked about flood relief efforts undertaken by his party -- the Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (MUDA).
In the photo, the 29-year-old can be seen in an unbuttoned white shirt that revealed his arm and shoulder for the jab, while covering the rest of his torso.
The politician has since responded to the criticism, explaining that he was attending a press conference on flood relief efforts before receiving his jab.
He also questioned if it was wrong to wear a white shirt from work for his vaccination appointment.
"Seriously. Don't you have anything better to do?" he added.
Commenters defended Syed Saddiq
Many Twitter users came to Syed Saddiq's defence, with some even questioning the news site's political affiliation.
"What do you want him to wear?"
"What's the problem?"
"Can we not find issues where there are none?"
"Hey @mynewshub, how much does UMNO f***ing pay you? What's his (Syed Saddiq's) fault? (He) can't wear a shirt? (Did he) show any sensitive parts of his body? It's better for you to go and dig a grave for yourself."
MUDA caught up in drinking controversy
Syed Saddiq's party was also caught up in another controversy recently, after photos of individuals drinking alcohol in the party's T-shirt circulated online.
Hello YB @SyedSaddiq . Ini ke orang muda yang dibanggakan Parti Muda boleh menggegar dunia?😂😂 Minum besar ea geng @partimuda . Guna duit crowdfunding ke?ðŸ¤ðŸ¤ðŸ¤ pic.twitter.com/1NyDHTWGmB
— Shawal (@shwsyz) January 4, 2022
The Twitter user who posted the photos also appeared to insinuate that the political party was using money that was crowdfunded for flood victims to purchase alcohol.
In response, Syed Saddiq denied the accusation, saying that "100 per cent of the donations are directed to the flood victims".
He also said that all transactions are recorded and audited, and elaborated that he had previously held a press conference to show receipts of the transactions.The politician further said that his party's existence is based on "tolerance", as it is made up of members from different races and religions.
"It is not their fault to drink (alcohol), unless they're driving," he added.
In another tweet, Syed Saddiq stated that his party was not a Malay political party, and "MUDA belongs to all Malaysians".
MUDA bukan parti melayu.
— Syed Saddiq (@SyedSaddiq) January 5, 2022
MUDA milik seluruh rakyat Malaysia.
Di pinggir desa & di tengah bandar,
Yang muda & tua,
Berbilang bangsa & agama.
We will defend & celebrate diversity. https://t.co/IX2jYCailI
"We will defend and celebrate diversity," the politician said.
According to Syed Saddiq, his party has received donations of over RM2.2 million (S$711,000) from the public. Out of that amount, RM1.47 million (S$476,000) had been channelled to the aid of flood victims.
He further stated that his party is "an open book", and they will provide weekly updates on the usage of the donations from the public.
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Top image via @syedsaddiq/Instagram & Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman/Facebook
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