Ousted Malaysian Politician Gets An Instagram Defense

When Meera Alyanna Mukhriz, 20, took to social media to stand up for her father, calling him “a person of integrity,” the post went viral in Malaysia. Meera has since become one of Malaysia’s young Instagram stars, brought to the spotlight by politics.

Her father is Mukhriz Mahathir, the son of Malaysia’s longest serving prime minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, who led the country for 22 years.

Mukhriz, 51, is the former chief minister of the northern state of Kedah. He was ousted from his job by Prime Minister Najib Razak after criticizing him over the handling of a scandal-hit state investment firm, 1 Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

Following Mukhriz’s ouster, the young woman, known as Ally, posted a picture of herself and her father on Instagram with the accompanying comment:

“I am honored to call you my father. A person with integrity, perseverance and strong will. It's upsetting to see the good guys lose but as someone once said to me, Allah SWT has a plan for us all. I am not going to pretend that I know politics. In fact, I know nothing at all. But as I know you personally, I know that you are a great man. As your daughter, I am very grateful for all that you have given me and I know that being Kedah MB (chief minister) was a great opportunity and experience for you - one you honored greatly. You were dedicated and you poured your heart and soul in your job. Since you were so busy, I valued the time I had (sometimes only a few hours a week) that I got to spend with you where you would encourage me to check out local Kedahan artists or new locally made clothes. So I would like to take this opportunity to say, you did the best you could've and I'm so very proud to be raised by you (and mummy)! And to Kedah, even though I didn't get to say my official goodbyes, thank you so much for welcoming us and thank you for being so wonderful!”

The post went viral, receiving 5,157 likes and her Instagram followers jumped to 43,500. Several local news websites carried her post.

“We r all #TeamMukhrizMahathir,” an Instagram user named Miraesafina wrote on Ally’s account.

“Good words from a daughter comes from good teaching of a father #justsaying,” wrote Azalina_fadzil.

“All people so proud with your daddy..your daddy is our idol..we always support him,” wrote Syimir-fitri.

Her father Mukhriz expressed surprise at the response Ally’s post received.

“I was surprised, I didn’t expect it,” Mukhriz told The Diplomat.

“I am glad she didn’t say anything that would have drawn a lot of criticisms so I am I glad it turned out that way,” he added.

Asked to comment on Ally’s tribute to him, Mukhriz said: “I didn’t expect her to be so public about it.”

Ally is the eldest child in a family of three girls and one boy. She is a final-year student at the Royal Holloway University of London, where she is studying marketing. And she is obviously a daddy’s girl – there is an adorable picture of her resting her elbows on her father’s shoulders with the caption: “Forever my armrest.”

Like many young people, her Instagram account is full of fun-filled pictures of herself with family and friends. The account gives a glimpse at the daily lives of some modern, young Malaysians  -- pursuing higher education in the West yet retaining traditional, cultural values. There is a picture of Ally giving out the traditional small envelopes of money to little children during the Eid celebration when her father was chief minister.

Amongst her most popular posts are selfies with her famous grandfather, Mahathir, which typically receive more than 1,000 likes. There is a picture of her kissing a smiling Mahathir on the head with the caption: “Last day puasa (fasting month). Recreating the same pose we make every year.” It received 2,598 likes.

The sight of her tough, unyielding grandfather, who is known as the Father of Development, posing indulgently for her selfies seem to strike a warm chord with many Malaysians.

“Tun M please stay healthy cuz Malaysians need u. We love u Tun,” wrote Safinajamil, addressing Mahathir by his title.

“U are so lucky to have sir Tun as your grand dad. I grew up under TUN'S leader. Our country was peaceful and harmony back then,” wrote azlinrahman29.

Mukhriz is not worried over the attention Ally has been receiving as he trusts in her “maturity.”

“She is becoming politically aware and I give her a lot of leeway to do what she likes. She started to express herself on Instagram and Twitter and we were all surprised at the kind of response she was getting,” said Mukhriz.

“We have to trust in our young people. They are our future. They should be allowed to make their own mistakes,” he added. “We will guide them from time to time. I suppose Ally represents a certain mindset in young people these days.”