USJ & Shah Alam Café Faces Boycott After Pro-PN Influencer Claims To Be Its New Owner
Mukarami Coffee has issued a statement refuting any changes in ownership and asserting its non-political business stance.
By Yap Wan Xiang — 22 Aug 2023, 02:26 PM
Popular café chain Mukarami Coffee is currently facing a boycott after an influencer who supports Perikatan Nasional (PN) claimed to be its new owner
In a statement published on Sunday, 20 August, Mukarami Coffee, which operates outlets in USJ 21, Seksyen 13, and Setia Alam, said that it has been receiving one-star reviews on Facebook and Google.
The surge in negative reviews followed the spotlight cast by a Facebook community group, Walaun PAS Buat Lawak Apa Harini, on the café chain's association with DD Chronicle, an influencer who openly supports Perikatan Nasional (PN) by creating parody songs.
DD Chronicle has over one million followers on Facebook and 405,000 subscribers on YouTube. His latest video mocks Pakatan Harapan (PH) for failing to win any seats in Terengganu (dapat telur di Terengganu) in the recently concluded state elections.
DD Chronicle's latest video mocks PH's performance in the recently concluded state elections.
Image via Dd Chronicle (Facebook)Mukarami Coffee denied that DD Chronicle is its new owner, explaining that the claim was merely a running joke between DD Chronicle and its actual owner, Azlina
"On the 27 June 2023, an influencer known as DD Chronicle dined at Mukarami Coffee (in) USJ 21 with his family. Pleased with our offerings, we invited him to produce a review.
"In the said review, DD engaged with our owner-operator, Puan Azlina, in a playful game of rock-paper-scissors, humorously portraying her 'losing' the café to him. He posted this video on his social media platform on 28 June 2023, claiming he is Mukarami Coffee's 'new owner'.
"To be clear, the ownership of Mukarami Coffee remains unchanged and has never transferred to DD," the establishment said in its statement.
Azlina then made another video with DD Chronicle in an attempt to 'reclaim' the café chain, only to 'lose' it again.
About two months after the videos were initially published, on 20 August, members of the Walaun PAS Buat Lawak Apa Harini Facebook group began urging fellow group members to boycott Mukarami Coffee.
"By 6am (on 20 August), we observed a sudden influx of unwarranted one-star reviews on Google Review and Facebook. Our investigations traced the origin of this boycott to the aforementioned group," read a portion of the café chain's statement.
The café chain has subsequently lodged a report with the police and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC)
"We would like to iterate that Mukarami Coffee's stance has always been neutral and non-partisan, as reflected in our social media posts and the ethos of our owners," it said, adding that it is currently seeking an amicable solution to the matter.
Meanwhile, DD Chronicle has also responded to the boycott, clarifying that Mukarami Coffee approached him for a review due to his huge social media following, and not because of his pro-PN stance.
He welcomed members of the public to boycott him instead of the café chain, asserting that Malaysians should not hesitate to support a business due to deffering political viewpoints.
"I think Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim would never want his supporters to go on a political crusade against PN supporters.
"Instead, they (Anwar's supporters) should focus on bridging the divide," he said in a TikTok video.
