Shopkeeper to be charged soon over upside-down flag
KEPALA BATAS: The 59-year-old man caught on video raising the Jalur Gemilang upside-down is expected to face charges in court soon.
North Seberang Perai OCPD Asst Comm Anuar Abd Rahman confirmed that police have wrapped up investigations and have recorded statements from 10 witnesses, while the accused has been released on bail pending instructions from the Attorney General's Chambers (AGC).
Aaron is urging all parties to not rush to judgement. — ZHAFARAN NASIB/The Star The 21-second clip filmed outside a hardware store in Kepala Batas showing the Jalur Gemilang being raised upside-down triggered public outrage since going viral on Saturday.
By international law, any country's flag being flown upside-down is a sign of great distress or emergency, and outsiders are obliged to check and render aid.
By Sunday, at least 16 police reports had been lodged.
A protest planned for yesterday fizzled out, with no crowd turning up while the shop remained shut.
In a TikTok video uploaded earlier, Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh urged participants to bring their own Jalur Gemilang and gather outside the shop to 'teach' the shopkeeper and another on attaching the national flag properly.
However, police were present at the store, including the Light Strike Force (LSF) unit, to prevent unrest.
It was reported that the 59-year-old man had admitted the blunder, claiming he was merely measuring the pole height and had yet to secure the flag when it was filmed.
He claimed that he later corrected the flag's position.
The case was investigated under Section 5 of the Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act 1963, Section 14 of the Minor Offences Act 1955 and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1988.
Bertam assemblyman Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican, who lodged a police report, said he confronted the people in the shop, saying it was hard to believe such a mistake could happen.
In a statement, Penang DAP chairman Steven Sim, said the state will continue to uphold harmony and urged that the matter be handled legally and constructively.
'I discussed it with Reezal and the Chief Minister's Kepala Batas coordinator Lay Hock Peng, regarding the incident.
'We agreed to fully hand over this matter to the police so that it can be addressed according to the law and proper procedures.
'I spoke to Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution to ensure there is no opportunity for any party to take actions that violate the law in connection with this incident.'
Meanwhile, Datuk Aaron Ago Dagang urged all parties not to rush to make assumptions regarding the recent viral incident.
The National Unity Minister said the act of displaying the Malaysian flag upside down is inappropriate and contrary to the proper protocol for flying the national flag as stipulated in the Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act 1963, but the actual cause of the incident must first be determined.
'In the spirit of unity, we should not hastily make assumptions before the results of a complete investigation are available,' he said in a post on social media platform X yesterday.
Aaron said the incident could have been intentional or due to an error, or public ignorance about the correct way to fly the Jalur Gemilang.
Aaron also said the public should not be afraid or hesitant to put up the flag following the incident, but instead take the opportunity to learn the proper protocol and continue to support the Communications Ministry's '1 House, 1 Jalur Gemilang' campaign in conjunction with the National Month celebrations.
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