A feud within Malaysia’s ruling party has intensified after supporters of former People’s Justice Party (PKR) deputy president Rafizi Ramli alleged they were targeted by the police over social media posts about last month’s party elections.
Rafizi, who served as deputy to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim within the party, lost his post in the May 23 internal election to Anwar’s daughter, Nurul Izzah. Her elevation fuelled accusations of growing nepotism in the party, which is helmed by her father.
Five days later, Rafizi resigned as economy minister and has since enjoyed a popularity bounce. On X, many supporters have changed their profile picture to mimic his new profile – a cartoon of himself in the style of US animation The Simpsons.
But with the growing popularity comes backlash against the 47-year-old, who is seen as a potential leader with a broad pull across Malaysia’s ethnic patchwork.
At least 20 social media users who backed Rafizi were under investigation by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), the former minister revealed.
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