National news agency
Bernama said today an internal investigation showed a photograph of Prime
Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak it released to newspapers last Saturday was
doctored.
The doctored photo from a Facebook post
circulating on the Internet
"Initial checks
revealed that the flawed picture was discovered at the source from where it was
sent," Bernama Editor-in-Chief Datuk Yong Soo Heong said in a report
carried by the national news agency.
He said further
investigations were ongoing to determine the motive of the person concerned and
whether there were elements of sabotage, Yong said.
"We are viewing
this matter seriously and will not hesitate to take appropriate action against
those responsible for the irregularities.
"Bernama always
strives to maintain high standards of professionalism and takes a serious view
of workplace integrity," he stressed.
Bernama's admission
is not only embarrassing to the news agency but could also hurt the prime
minister's image as well.
The publication of
the photograph in various newspapers had been criticised online with a number
of blogs and websites suggesting the background image of the crowd in the
photograph was the same as that of another picture.
In the photograph,
the prime minister is seen greeting well-wishers at a public gathering in his
Pekan constituency.
Bernama had also
denied a separate allegation that it had doctored another photograph of
function hosted by the PM earlier this month.
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