For decades, many of Malaysia’s establishment politicians were nurtured in the arrogance that they could easily manipulate the people.
Their method was to push deep social, racial and religious divisions.
The aim was straightforward: keep the public busy fighting manufactured culture wars. That way, they would remain blind to the actions of those entrusted to govern the country.
The strategy may have worked in the past, but recent events show it is unlikely to work in the future. A growing number of acts of defiance from across the country show that people are catching on to this elitist ploy.
Ummi Umairah Bakhit, a University of Malaya student, boldly called out high-level corruption. She called donating to the ‘Najib Razak Solidarity Fund’ “the stupidest thing I’ve seen in my entire life”.
Along with the backlash against a political fundraiser for Najib, ordinary are issuing an unprecedented challenge to established power structures. They are insisting that Malaysia’s constitutional institutions and the definition of justice belong to the nation, not to a privileged few.
The fundraiser backlash
The most prominent resistance to the established order took place when Umno launched a crowdfunding campaign to Najib pay a RM50m fine. The fine is a condition of the royal pardon that lets him serve the rest of his sentence under house arrest.
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Organisers may have expected a massive wave of blind grassroots solidarity for ‘Bossku’ (my boss).
Instead, the initiative ran face-first into an unexpected brick wall: the coffee shop humour of the public.
A wider pattern of defiance
Nor is this an isolated flash of defiance.
In June 2025 students at the Gempur Rasuah Sabah 2.0 (attack corruption in Sabah) rally marched through Kota Kinabalu. They burned a caricature of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, an action seldom seen against a sitting prime minister.
In July 2025 about 18,000 people, by police count, took to the streets of Kuala Lumpur chanting “Turun Anwar” (Anwar, step down) at a rally organised by the opposition. The organisers claimed a far higher figure.
They turned up even after the government’s last-minute announcement of cash handouts and cheaper petrol. Opposition leaders said the move was meant to dampen momentum. The government said it was to ease living costs.
Even with the modest numbers, what critics call the old playbook of tossing goodies at the people to buy silence is losing its grip.
What connects all of this is a single refusal: the refusal to let the establishment define the terms of the conversation.
The backlash against the fundraiser represents something far larger than a flagging political donation drive. It marked the resistance to what looked like a dangerous attempt to stage an unofficial public referendum on the legitimacy of the nation’s judicial system.
By rallying the masses to pay the fine, the organisers appeared to send the message that the courts do not speak for the people. It also suggested that justice should be defined by political popularity, not legal processes.
Had the fund reached its target, it would have served to delegitimise the judicial process and the verdicts of courts that took years to secure. It looked like an attempt to replace judicial process with a public popularity contest.
But the script got rewritten. Rather than accepting this narrative or erupting into polarised street clashes, the fundraising became a platform for protest.
Many critics launched what can only be described as a one-sen rebellion. They reportedly transferred micro-donations of just one to RM0.01 (one sen) or RM0.05 into the official fundraising account. Thousands of screenshots of bank transfer slips flooded social media platforms.
The goal was not to help, but to use the bank transfer’s digital receipt notes to leave blistering, satirical messages labelling the former premier a “kleptocrat”. Perhaps, also to show off in the coffee shop.
By treating a radical challenge to the judiciary as an interactive joke, the public completely hijacked the establishment’s narrative.
This financial pushback exposed a massive gap between internet hype and real-world reality. Social media can be manipulated to make it look like the masses are desperate to vindicate their old leaders.
Yet when asked to open their wallets during a time of hardship to help a convicted former leader serve his sentence at home, many refused. The backlash suggested that the artificial noise generated by political machinery cannot buy a mandate to overrule the courts.
In the end, by refusing to fund an elite safety net and ridiculing the attempt instead, many ordinary people drew a firm line.
Alongside the courage of young student leaders who refuse to let corruption be normalised, many ordinary people have rejected the dangerous idea that justice belongs to whoever can win the most public support.
In doing so, these people, people across the country helped protect the integrity of the judicial system. True accountability comes from the courts, not from popularity.
The views expressed in Aliran's media statements and the NGO statements we have endorsed reflect Aliran's official stand. Views and opinions expressed in other pieces published here do not necessarily reflect Aliran's official position.
- Tegakkan maruah serta kualiti kehidupan rakyat
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- Raikan kerencaman dan keterangkuman
- Selamatkan demokrasi dan angkatkan keluhuran undang-undang
- Lawan rasuah dan kronisme
