Malaysians in support of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak have created the hashtag #bestrongPM on social media, in an apparent bid to counter the scorn netizens have been heaping on the premier since yesterday.
This comes in the wake of heated speculation over the identity of "Malaysian Official 1", mentioned in the lawsuits filed by the United States Department of Justice on Wednesday.
While the #Malaysianofficial1 hashtag had been accompanied with a variety of jokes and artwork, Najib's supporters posting #bestrongPM opted for a standardised template.
#bestrongPM @NajibRazak dalam berhadapan tohmahan dan persepsi negatif yang dilemparkan#kamibersama #Malaysia pic.twitter.com/wrBWIIB0AU
— Publicist (@iqbalikhwandi) July 22, 2016
#bestrongPM dalam berhadapan tohmahan dan persepsi negatif yang dilemparkan#kamibersama #Malaysia pic.twitter.com/flbaW8UJKC
— OBRIGADO (@BARAnBARAU) July 22, 2016
Some did veer off the script, which is roughly translated to "#bestrongPM in facing the allegations and negative perceptions that are being thrown at you".
However, the messages were still positive.
#BeStrongPM Datuk Seri @NajibRazak One Day Malaysians Know Who U Are.We Always Support U :) pic.twitter.com/oueMc39oTK
— romy irwan shah (@romyirwanshah) July 22, 2016
#BeStrongPM from us, Malaysians.
— eke ⊿ (@ekemono) July 22, 2016
Or, at the very least, anti-US.
But once news broke of the hashtag's debut in social media, it didn't take long for detractors to hijack it.
Semua yg #BeStrongPM ni betol betol sokong najib ke?
— | Azuana | (@NAzuanaR) July 22, 2016
Haih la Melayu~~
Sudah sudah la dengan UMNO! Without UMNO pon melayu boleh hidup~~
#BeStrongPM.... You can't say it's "From Malaysians"... I'm Malaysian and I never agree to this
— Joe (@foxxxyyy37) July 22, 2016
The DOJ filed civil suits to seize assets in the United States that it claimed were purchased using funds siphoned from 1MDB. It plans to return the proceeds of the sale of these seized assets to Malaysia.
According to the suits, the largest transaction made to 'Malaysian Official 1' was a US$681 million deposit to an AmBank account in March 2013.
The amount allegedly came from a US$3 billion bond 1MDB raised to invest in a joint venture with Aabar, the suits said.
From the bond, US$1.26 billion was diverted into an account belonging to Tanore Finance Corporation, which then pumped in the US$681 million to ‘Malaysian Official 1’.