Living In The Past Rtm Red Faced In Hattrick Of Blunders As Pmx Hitches A Ride In The Beast To Klcc

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HOW would Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim feel if Singaporean, Indonesian and Thai official TV stations mistakenly name the Malaysian head of government as Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob or Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad?
Such was the question posed by human rights activist and blogger Charles Hector as government-owned/controlled broadcaster RTM (Radio Televisyen Malaysia) could have broken its own record with three editorial slip-ups in a span of 24 hours.
Whether this is a reflection of the arrival of “the most influential US President of this century” in the Malaysian shore having stolen too much limelight away from the spirit of 47th ASEAN Summit 2025, Hector wants PMX and Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil to own up for the disgrace.
“This is what happened yesterday (Oct 26) in a LIVE broadcast when RTM referred to the names of not ONE but THREE leaders of Malaysia’s closest neighbours in ASEAN that share borders with Malaysia wrongly,” he hit out in his latest blog.


“RTM has quickly apologised but the Malaysian government has yet to make an apology, be it the Minister responsible or PMX himself. It may be understandable if the mistake involved that of a leader of an unfamiliar country but the trio are leaders of ASEAN member States.”
To recap, the RTM commentator erroneously referred to (i) Singapore’s PM as Lee Hsien Loong instead of Lawrence Wong; (ii) Indonesian President as Joko Widodo instead of Prabowo Subianto; and (iii) Thailand’s PM as Srettha Thavisin instead of Anutin Charnvirakul.
“Malaysia may move forward laying blame on some RTM commentator but not in this case as the ultimate blame should lie on the Communications Minister, PMX and the Madani Government,” insisted Hector.
Charles Hector“Speedy apologies are needed from our PMX now as such blunders (even if done unintentionally) may have repercussions on all in Malaysia – including businesses having dealings with the said countries.
Added the co-founder of NGO Malaysians Against Death Penalty & Torture (MADPET):
“All in all, this is a major EMBARASSMENT and act of DISRESPECT which is made worse for its was being covered by many news agencies all over the world. Is this one of the reasons why Malaysia doesn’t even have the power to save Malaysians from execution in Singapore?”
Taking the matter a little further, seasoned journalists might be able to attest that the script which the RTM commentator/s relied upon could either be outdated or that in the haste of fulfilling countless pressing obligations amid manpower constraint, the news team had forgotten to update the script.
This is because official news agency Bernama had during the run-up to the 47th ASEAN Summit which runs from Oct 26-28 published an updated list of each and every of the ASEAN leader and other foreign head of state/dignitary.

Let’s hope that PAS which has been fighting tooth and nail to oppose President Donald Trump’s stepping foot in Malaysia would not capitalise this man-made blunder by deeming it a divine retribution. –  Focus Malaysia

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