5 Protest Ideas I Have For Jamal Yunos

Being investigated under Section 143 of the Penal Code for unlawful assembly and Section 268 for public nuisance, Jamal claimed his actions were to send out a message that consuming alcohol was not a good thing.

“Although I was handcuffed and locked up because of the previous protest, it has done little to hinder me from opposing any beer festival in Selangor. That is my job as the chairman of the Malaysian NGOs Coalition,” Jamal was reported as saying.

While Jamal’s stunt is violent in nature and should not be condoned, he does have the right to protest, for every Malaysian has similar rights as well.

Clearly, as the chairman of the Malaysian NGOs Coalition, he should, no?

As a 'tribute' to Jamal, Malaysia’s very own ballsy stuntman, I would like to suggest a few matters he could protest on – after all, I trust Jamal is not someone who would only protest on matters that benefits his own agenda.

A Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim) officer had recently in a religious lecture at the mosque in Shah Alam, said it was not right for Sultan Ibrahim of Johor to disallow a Muslim-friendly launderette in the state.

Criticising the Johor ruler, Zamihan Mat Zain, who is also Sunni Organisation Malaysia (Aswaja) president, said, "There was a Sultan who had said Muslim-friendly launderettes are not allowed in his state. It's not right for the Sultan to say such things. These launderettes are meant to show that Muslims uphold cleanliness.”

Jamal should protest against the condemnation of the Sultan by the Jakim officer and make it clear to Malaysians, including religious authorities that no form of narrow-minded, myopic and disrespectful behaviour towards our rulers will be reciprocated. The institution of the Sultan should be respected at all times, by all parties.

Suggestion: Conduct a ‘going bald protest’.

Few days ago, a 20-year-old bogus dentist was charged in the Melaka Sessions Court for running an unregistered private dental clinic, claiming that her ‘business’ is approved by the Health Ministry. Having posted her RM70,000 fine, allegedly contributed by PPIM, the bogus dentist arrogantly thanked the people who reported her, making her famous and well-known.

I suggest Jamal should hold a protest outside her business premise, urging the public to boycott all services provided by the bogus dentist.

At the same time, Jamal should protest against the NGO that allegedly paid off her RM70,000 court fine when the money could have been used for a better cause.

On top of that, Jamal should also protest against Deputy Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya who was reported by NST to have extended the bogus dentist’s letter of appeal to the ministry's Oral Health Division director for consideration. Even though he claimed he was doing his duty as the Balik Pulau Member of Parliament, his excuse cannot be accepted as an illegal practice should never be supported.

Protest suggestion: ‘Brushing teeth protest’ outside the bogus dental clinic, the NGO, and health ministry.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi recently announced that out of RM30 million allocated by the government to develop the infrastructure of the tahfiz schools, some RM24 million, or 80%, was used to pay staff salaries.

It is my utmost hope that Jamal could step in to protest against the misuse of funds by these religious schools. Clearly, if nothing is done now, the 547 private tahfiz schools, 20 state tahfiz schools, 10 state tahfiz colleges and over 400 unregistered private tahfiz schools in our country may be denied a conducive environment for learning despite the aid given by the government.

Suggestion: Solat hajat protest outside every tahfiz school in the country.

Hamid Apdal, the younger brother of Parti Warisan Sabah president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal, is currently remanded by Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in connection with the alleged siphoning of RM1.5 billion federal funds meant for rural projects in Sabah.

A mosque volunteer and a member of UMNO, Hamid is the sixth known person taken into custody for the investigation of the alleged embezzlement of funds from the Rural and Regional Development Ministry for a six year period between 2009 and 2015.

Besides him, Shafie’s key ally, Warisan vice president Datuk Peter Anthony; the party’s youth chief, Datuk Mohd Azis Jamman; a former deputy secretary in the ministry; a businessman and two Sabah UMNO youth leaders, were also detained.

Jamal should assemble his troupes outside the MACC building, supporting the commission’s effort to cleanse Malaysia, and at the same time, urge for a clean investigation, one without the interference from any politicians.

Protest suggestion: Conduct protests wearing nothing but undies.

In case the suggested protests above are too heavy for Jamal to fulfil, perhaps he could also consider something much simpler, such as protesting against dirty public toilets (as a start) - he can even recycle the towels and bucket he had used in his past protests!

So Jamal, which protest would you fancy to undertake next?