“Don’t believe every post and tweet. There is so much fake news out there that even the Economist magazine this week questioned if social media had become a threat to democracy.
“We have to take fake news seriously in Malaysia,” he said when delivering his keynote address at the Malaysia Social Media Week (MSMW) 2017 at Berjaya Times Square Hotel here.
He said there were certain quarters in the country that used fake news to spread rumours that Malaysia was a failed state.
“There are those that misuse social media and blogs to spread lies and propaganda, such as Malaysia is going bankrupt and that it is a failed state.
“There is no basis to these claims. If Malaysia was on the verge of bankruptcy or was a failed state, why would the World Bank say that the Malaysian economy is proceeding from a position of strength?”
Najib said more than 20 million Malaysians were on social media and conceded that it was a useful tool to promote dialogue.
“I am on Facebook and Twitter, and I have been able to reach out and have discussions with people via the #Mariberhubung programme.
“Some Budget 2018 initiatives were part of feedback from the rakyat through social media as well.”
Najib said only last week, he and Alibaba founder Jack Ma launched the world’s first Digital Free Trade Zone (DFTZ) outside China.
“This includes more than 1,970 export-ready small and medium enterprises (SMEs) on board.
“The DFTZ hub is Alibaba’s first regional e-recruitment hub outside China, and is expected to double the growth of Malaysia’s air cargo volume from the current 700,000 tonnes a year to 1.3 million tonnes a year within a decade.”
Najib said the country’s pro-digital policy would churn out an estimated investment value of RM31.2 billion.
“This will have real effects on Malaysia. There will be 160,000 jobs created by this and it will increase the overall contribution of the digital economy to our gross national income to RM294 billion.”
Meanwhile, Treasury secretary-general Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah, who delivered his speech ahead of Najib, highlighted his vision for the country’s future.
“I supported the idea of Uber the day it came to Malaysia despite objections from taxi drivers. I supported Uber because it is more efficient than taxis.
“My vision includes driverless cars in the country. This is my vision for the future,” he said.
Irwan also said the government had a team to rebut reports on fake news going viral on the Internet.
“There needs to be a rebuttal when addressing fake news. We have a team in each government department to rebut fake news.
“This is to ensure that people are not taken in by fake news,” he added.
MSMW is a two-day event organised by the Malaysia Social Media Chambers (SMC) and supported by the communications and multimedia ministry, the youth and sports ministry and the health ministry.