Letter to editor
IN Malaysia today, you don’t seem to need a courtroom to kill someone’s reputation. Just whip out a dodgy video clip, slap on the “whistleblower” badge – and let TikTok do the dirty work. Bam, the damage is done.
But here’s the bombshell most have overlooked: just recently, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) issued a resounding clearance, exonerating Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.
No wrongdoing. No interference. In fact, MACC confirmed the Sabah government cooperated fully, providing documents, interviews and access without hesitation. End of story.
Or at least, it should have been. Instead, the online circus has already run wild with hashtags trending and opinions flying faster than facts.
‘Armchair whistleblower’
Let’s hit pause. What’s a genuine whistleblower, really?
A true whistleblower fights for the public – not for likes, shares or political point-scoring. They deliver hard evidence such as bank statements, contracts or witness testimonies – often at great personal cost, facing threats, job loss or worse.
They go through proper channels like the MACC, internal audits or the Parliament, thus ensuring that accountability is transparent and lawful.
They don’t move in shadows, leaking doctored, grainy footage on social media while hiding their identity behind pseudonyms or deleted accounts.
Welcome to the age of armchair activism where anyone with a mobile phone and a grudge can spark a digital wildfire.
The fall-out? Swift, savage and often irreparable, especially when the timing screams political sabotage.
In recent years, Malaysia has seen similar stunts: videos of alleged misconduct in state projects or federal agencies, only for investigations to fizzle out when the evidence doesn’t stack up.
The Sabah saga fits this script far too neatly. Just as the state gains traction on development and investment such as new infrastructure projects, tourism boosts and foreign partnerships, out pop secret videos accusing assemblymen of dodgy mining deals.
These clips – often filmed in dimly lit rooms or during private meetings – suggest backroom deals and bribes but lack context or corroboration.
Never mind that MACC’s forensics flagged the first batch as tampered with edits, splices and missing timestamps. Or that a second, supposedly “unedited” set conveniently surfaced to fan the flames.
Valuable time wasted
Yet, no charges. No smoking gun. No link to Hajiji who is also the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) chairman. Just whispers, wild theories and algorithm-fuelled fury that are amplified by influencers and opposition voices eager for a scalp.
Let’s be blunt: corruption is a cancer that must be cut out. No one disputes that. But political smear campaigns masquerading as heroism?
That’s equally toxic. Blur the line between the two and we don’t just wound individuals. We erode faith in the institutions meant to shield us like MACC and our courts.
This isn’t just a Sabah problem – it’s a national one – with public trust in governance already shaky after years of scandals like 1MDB.
So, who’s cashing in on this chaos?
Not Sabah’s people who crave steady leadership and straight answers. Not MACC who is forced to play whack-a-mole with viral nonsense instead of cracking real cases, thus diverting resources from serious probes into money laundering or procurement fraud.
And certainly not leaders like Hajiji, left to debunk rumours that should’ve been dismissed from the start and had to spend precious time on damage control rather than progress.
This isn’t a plea for politicians. It’s a rallying cry for fairness and due process – the very principles we ditch every time we let trending topics overtake truth.
With their wide following and clickbait culture, social media platforms are turning us into a nation of knee-jerk reactors, not critical thinkers.
Malaysia needs robust shields for real whistleblowers. But we also need barricades against the fakes. It’s high time we stopped letting anonymous online leaks hijack our national dialogue, replacing reasoned debate with digital mob rule.
Because if we keep letting TikTok play judge and jury, we won’t just lose trust. We’ll lose the truth itself and that’s a verdict none of us can afford.
The stakes are higher than ever. Without a return to evidence-based justice, Malaysia risks becoming a nation where perception overtakes reality – and the loudest voice wins. – April 14, 2025
Boniface Mojuntin
Tawau
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
Images credit: Hajiji Haji Noor/Facebook
