This Content Is Only For Subscribers
KUCHING, July 9: Influencers can pose a threat in the digital era to a country’s security due to the power they hold over their followers.
Premier of Sarawak Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg said an influencer with substantial followers may influence the situation in certain areas.
“Nowadays, the activity of espionage is not like ‘James Bond’ (spying) before. James Bond (was) visible, today it’s invisible.
“Now, there is a new word (called) influencer which did not exist before—meaning they have their own influence including across political borders.
“That is why in technology, they normally say ‘how many followers’ (sic) and this is what they referred to as netizens,” he said during ‘Sunday Morning with Premier 2.0: Dialogue Session with Young Entrepreneurs on New Economy’ held at Imperial Hotel here today.
Abang Johari cited Mark Zuckerberg as an example because the latter founded Facebook which once was the largest social media platform utilised to monitor activities in the United States if America.
He was responding to Ngapuh Lodge’s chief accountability officer Joshua Ng who claimed that foreign forces have taken over policy making in the country and it is now a matter of national security.
Ng posed a question on what is the Sarawak government’s plan to empower and protect citizens from these forces.
Minister of Sports, Youth and Entrepreneur Development Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, Tebedu assemblyman Dr Simon Sinang Bada, Deputy Secretary (Economic and Development Planning) Datu Dr Muhammad Abdullah Zaidel and Sarawak Economic Planning Unit (EPU) director Lester Matthew were among those present. — DayakDaily
