Y.A.B. Cartoon

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Title: Transformasi Najib
Author: Akmar Hisham Mokhles
Genre: Politics/History
ISBN: 978-967-5702-04-4
Publisher: Qalif Umar Creative
Year: 2011

I have never heard of any Prime Minister in this world who uses comic to reach out to the public, particularly youth. The closest I've heard would be Bill Clinton with his Clinton Hamburgers

ajib Razak (Y.A.B. Dato' Seri Prime Minister (PM)) never failed to attract my attention. This time with his comic, Transformasi Najib, by Akmar Hisham Mokhles. Where did I get it from? Well, One night, coming back from work late, I joined a group of friends for early Sahur (Supper) at Syed Section 11 Shah Alam. One of them handed me a pile of publications which included, amongst others, a Hari Raya card from our Prime Minister (addressed to the public), a book by some Professor Khairil Annas of which, the title was too long to be remembered; and a comic,.... a comic of the PM himself! I asked "Where did you get these from?", and my friend answered, "From the 1M4U launch. It is the shortform for 1Malaysia for Youth". Hmmmm.... no wonder there is a comic. It is for youth! Last I understood, youth in Malaysia (politically) ranges from 18 to 40 years old. The comic must have been for those aged 18 to early 20's, I figured.

Anyway, that comic facinated me. I have never heard of any Prime Minister in this world who uses comic to reach out to the public, particularly youth. The closest I've heard would be Bill Clinton with his Clinton Hamburgers as mocked by David Letterman. Amusing? Yes! Effective? Well, Yes indeed! Imagine this, youth from all over Malaysia who reads this comic will be able to understand what he (Najib) is trying to do for the country. So I put myself in the shoes of those youth. If I am to read the comic, what message will be conveyed across to me (to the youth)? This, in my mind, can be a powerful tool especially when the General Election is expected to be held late 2012 or early 2013. The new generation of voters can be influenced quite intelligently by this method of mass communication. Maybe the PM should commisssion Lat to come out with a set of publication from time to time because I believe that he (Lat) managed to convey Tun Mahathir's messages to the public via his cartoons quite briliantly. So, I took away that comic and read it during the weekend.

.... a Pakcik next to me said, "Hmmmm.... apa tu lagi si Najib nak buat tu? Kartun pun dia buat jugak? Pakcik cuma mau RM500 duit raya tahun ni. Rasa-rasa dia nak bagi tak?"

The comic is in Malay and it is easy for any Malaysian to understand. The language is clear and easy. The cartoon characters are identifiable to its real life characters and the message throughout the comic is political yet not overly done. I must say that this is a brilliant piece of work. However, as I was reading it while waiting for my car to be washed at Shine Shine, a Pakcik (elderly man) next to me said, "Hmmmm.... apa tu lagi si Najib nak buat tu? Kartun pun dia buat jugak? Pakcik cuma mau RM500 duit raya tahun ni. Rasa-rasa dia nak bagi tak?" [In English: What is Najib up to with all these cartoons? All I want is the token of RM500 for the festive season. Do you think he will give?]. What is wrong with Malaysians nowadays? All they want is just short term money like that? I truly feel sad. While the non-Bumis fight for their education, economic access and equal opportunities, the Bumis talk about getting Duit Raya (token) from the Prime Minister? What a nut case. I sure hope that the youth of today will not grow to be such narrow minded people. This comic, I believe, have got the strength to shape the young minds. F*** the Pakciks who have no sense.

So what message did the comic conveyed to its readers? It tells the story about Najib's birth, his early years and all the way to his current life. The story of his early life alone contains many political messages as it introduces stories about what Tun Razak (Najib's father who was the 2nd Prime Minister) started for Malaysia. It provides the foundation to what Najib is doing now as a continuation of his father's legacy. Things like abolishing poverty, developing the nation and being close to the community. Basically, it opens up the opportunity for people to know Najib without even meeting him. Brilliant approach. Of course the comic never miss important events that mark Najib's career progression as a politician: Everything from being a Member of Parliament at the age of 22 all the way until holding the highest post in the country's administration. One amusing bit out of all these would be the page on how Tun Mahathir declared his resignation. I remembered watching it on the TV (very dramatic) and now the author/cartoonist is trying to express the same mood in the comic including a cartoon character of Rafidah (The Minister of Trade back then) with a speech box that says, "Why? Why?" responding to Tun's resignation declaration.

So, what message that Najib conveyed in this comic? For a start, he made clear what his expectations are for the current political leaders: (1) Loyalty, (2) Integrity, (3) Capability; and (4) Dedication. This is further reinforced by the appointment of a special minister from the corporate world to monitor the Key Performance Indicators (KPI) of the ministers in the cabinet. Truly a strong message sent across to the public to say that he means business for his Manifestos to the Rakyat (citizens) to the extent that his own ministers are held accountable for their own performances.

The comic further revealed Najib's slogan for 1Malaysia "Rakyat Didahulukan, Pencapaian Diutamakan" which means People First Achievements Prioritised. In driving this 1Malaysia concept, 8 values have been identified as follows:

1. Excellence Culture
2. Courage
3. Acceptance
4. Education
5. Integrity
6. Meritocracy
7. Humility
8. Loyalty


The comic then showcases his humility whereby the Prime Minister had appeared in various public spaces to be closer to the public. Some of those places visited were restaurants at Brickfields, street shops at Petaling Street and the village Kampung Baru in Kuala Lumpur. The visits were inpromptu, informal, casual and unexpected by the public. It was positively accepted by the public. To ensure that the youth understand what he is trying to achieve for the nation, the comic listed his plans and strategies based on the 2012 Budget. Some of those that may get significant attention from the youth are as follows:

1. RM2.5 billion assistance for new entrepreneurs
2. RM1 billion for school upgrade programmes
3. RM100 for all schooling students
4. Voucher for books of tertiary education
5. RM200 million funding for seeding start up companies under ValueCap Sdn Bhd
6. Subsidy of RM500 for those earning RM3,000 and below per month
7. Cheap priced goods groceries stores, Kedai Rakyat 1Malaysia (KR1M)
8. Introduction of 4,500 agricultural entrepreneurship contracts
9. Cheap housing scheme, Perumahan Rakyat 1Malaysia (PR1MA)
10. Micro financing totalling RM2.1 billion for entrepreneurs
11. Youth technical training provision of RM200 million
12. RM15 million for the construction of 150 futsal courts
13. RM50 million for the development of sports centres
14. RM30 million to train young athletes
15. RM200 million for the establishment of a venture capital for the creative industry

The comic went further to show how lives of Malaysians were made easier with the establishment 1Malaysia Moving Medical Clinics, laptops for schools and many more. On the last page, the publication appropriately ends with a message from Y.A.B. Dato' Seri Najib Razak which sounded as follows:

"Adat memegang kepercayaan orang
Jangtan sekali-kali menikam belakang
Adat memegang kekuasaan
Jangan sekali-kali merosak binasakan
Adat memegang kebebasan
Jangan sekali-kali lupa batasan"

[In English: The ethics of trust is loyalty,
of power is anti-destructive,
of freedom is tolerable limits]

Quotation by Y.A.B. Dato' Seri Najib Razak
Prime Minister of Malaysia

* kopihangtuah



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