She said BN needed to double its efforts to master ICT, particularly the new media, in facing the cyber war and opposition attacks involving arising issues and twisted facts.
"The politics of today is a war based on public perception and in this age of technology which uses a lot of ICT facilities, anyone who is skilled in using ICT will have the edge in influencing the minds of Internet users, who are mostly the young," she told Bernama.
Heng said BN leaders needed to act fast in explaining government policies and responding to arising issues as well as in correcting facts to prevent the people's minds from being led astray.
"If this is allowed to go on, it will give the opposition the advantage of poisoning and diverting the people's minds from the truth," she added.
Heng, who is also Women, Family and Community Development Deputy Minister, cited how a good government policy made in the interest of the people could be twisted by the opposition. "In the end, the people fail to understand the policy and fail to appreciate the government's effort."
For example, she said, the government had been accused of not being sensitive to the needs of the disabled but when it announced the pioneer programme, Taska Orang Kurang Upaya (childcare centre for the disabled) under the 2013 Budget, the same group questioned it.
"They criticise the programme, saying it is not inclusive and that the government is separating disabled children from normal children at the existing childcare centres," she added.
Heng also reminded the media to report truthfully and accurately on issues, to uphold the journalism code of ethics and not to exaggerate things based on their own perception.
"We are not asking any quarters to write news reports or articles favouring us (the government) but only asking that the reporting be objective and fair," she said.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Nur Aimidiyana Zuher
Quelle/Source: Bernama, 01.11.2012
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