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The union says any action that restricts media freedom will only damage the government’s credibility and erode public trust.
The National Union of Journalists Malaysia urged ministers and political leaders to respect the role of the media and to refrain from using their positions to pressure journalists or news organisations.
PETALING JAYA: The National Union of Journalists Malaysia (NUJ) has hit out at a minister over the “unethical” reprimand of a journalist during a press conference, calling it an attempt to intimidate the media.
The union warned that any action that restricts media freedom would only damage the government’s credibility and erode public trust.
“Just as journalists must adhere to ethics, politicians too must be ethical,” NUJ said in a statement.
While NUJ did not name the minister involved, the statement comes after a news portal posted a reel on Facebook, in which housing and local government minister Nga Kor Ming was seen reprimanding an Utusan Malaysia journalist.
In the video, Nga was seen asking the name of the media company that a journalist represented.
After the journalist answered “Utusan Malaysia”, Nga said: “I’ll remember that, and I’ll be calling your chief editors. I don’t want you coming here and ruining the event (with such a question). I’ll hold Utusan Malaysia accountable – I’ll call your chief editors because this concerns national interest.”
It is understood that the press conference was held at the pre-launch of the “I Lite U” project yesterday, in conjunction with Visit Malaysia Year 2026, where the journalist had purportedly asked why the name of the programme was in English instead of Malay.
NUJ went on to say that as a public servant, a minister must respect the role of the media as a conveyor of information and the voice of the people, not belittle or pressure journalists for questions that might be uncomfortable
