No need to apologise, you did not steal public funds - MP tells rock band

A PKR lawmaker sees no reason for local rock group Drama Band to apologise over its performance during the Anugerah Juara Lagu ke-34 (AJL34).

Fahmi Fadzil (above) said this is because the band's members were not responsible for the theft of public funds.

“Drama Band need not apologise. You did not steal from the people,” he said in a Twitter post today.

Cartoonist Fahmi Reza, who landed in court for his clown-faced caricature of former premier Najib Abdul Razak in the past, shared a similar view.

He said Drama Band should remain steadfast and defend its performance on grounds of artistic expression.

“There is no reason for Drama Band to apologise. Political satires often invite criticism and are scorned by those who do not appreciate them.

“They (Drama Band) should continue (expressing themselves) and must be free of all forms of censorship,” he tweeted.

Yesterday, Malaysiakini reported that the lead singer of the six-piece outfit Aepul Roza had apologised to those who were offended by their Sunday night performance at the Bukit Jalil stadium.

Their performance had mocked Najib, his wife Rosmah Mansor and several others. Both the former premier and his wife are facing trial for multiple charges of corruption and abuse of power.

Among the issues parodied was the audio recording of Najib's telephone conversations with Rosmah on the 1MDB scandal.

As the band was performing, a couple in clown makeup similar to the caricature created by Fahmi appeared on stage.

The man was dressed in a suit while the woman was clad in a baju kurung, headscarf and carried several handbags.

Rosmah is known to have a soft spot for designer handbags. More than 250 of them were seized during a police raid in connection with the 1MDB investigation in May 2018 after her husband was routed from power in the 14th general election several days earlier.

The woman then uttered the infamous phrase “Can I advise you something?” from the Najib-Rosmah telephone conversation.

In an Instagram posting yesterday, the singer said: “We are sorry for our mistake. To those who were offended, please forgive us.”

Meanwhile, Media Prima Television Networks chief executive officer Johan Ishak claimed his team had not been informed of the concept prior to the event.