The Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Kota Kinabalu donated a total of 166,000 face masks to the Sabah state government on 29 March.
The Chinese Consulate General to Kota Kinabalu, Liang Caide gave them to Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Shafie Apdal at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) Terminal 2. (https://www.facebook.com/jabatanpenerangansabah/posts/2726809930750620)
These face masks were actually flown in via a chartered AirAsia flight from Guangzhou, China to Kota Kinabalu.
The Sabah state government isn’t the only one to have received aid from China. Likewise, the Malaysian federal government has also received protective equipment from China which was duly accepted by Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein.
Very sadly, I have received many complaints from members of the public that there is fake news going around social media alleging that the masks and gloves donated by the Chinese government are contaminated.
(https://www.facebook.com/muhammad.zulfaqar.7140/posts/141298990731531).
Even worse, this fake news has also described the Chinese government as “jahat” (having bad intention), “kapiaq” (infidel) and is in cahoots with DAP. All of this is racist slander that can have far-reaching consequences and undermine the good diplomatic relationship between Malaysia and China. Furthermore, such terrible slander can threaten the ongoing effort to save Malaysians from the Covid-19 pandemic.
I would hereby like to strongly condemn those who make use of social media to create and spread such despicable fake news.
In addition, I would also like to urge the police and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to arrest and take stern action against those who spread slander about the Chinese government’s assistance to the Sabah state government.