National Unity Minister Datuk Halimah Mohamed Sadique has urged Malaysians to learn to respect and appreciate the value of Jalur Gemilang as the national flag of the country.

She said loving the country did not only mean fostering the spirit of unity among each other or respecting the diversity of races and religions, but also to care about the Jalur Gemilang.

Halimah was responding to recent viral photographs of the Jalur Gemilang being hung upside down.

“... there are some quarters who have a casual attitude, who do not care about the condition of the Jalur Gemilang; on whether it is upside down or not, whether there are too few or too many stripes on them, on whether the flag is in good condition or worn out, as long as the flag is up on the pole.

"We should be responsible Malaysians, who know how to appreciate it, not merely as a physical flag, but to appreciate the value of the Jalur Gemilang the flag of our country," she said.

She said this to Bernama and RTM after the filming of the music video for the ‘Saya Anak Malaysia 2020’ campaign at Dataran Merdeka here today.

The campaign is a collaborative initiative undertaken by the Ministry of National Unity and Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) in conjunction with the National Month and the upcoming Malaysia Day.

Halimah, who was also involved in the filming, said the music video would reflect how Malaysians celebrate their diversity as ‘Anak Malaysia’, with a sense of pride for their homeland.

The campaign’s director Dr. Idzwan Yacob said the music video would feature the song ‘Saya Anak Malaysia 2020’, which is a recomposed version of the original - ‘Saya Anak Malaysia’, by DR Sam.

“We recomposed the song because we know, sometimes songs need to be given a breath of fresh air for the new generation to appreciate it.

"So, older people can listen to the new version of the song, while the new generation can appreciate this song with a more contemporary feel and style," he said.

The campaign’s filming took two days to complete with the involvement of 250 people, including students of UUM’s School of Creative Industry Management as well as local celebrities.

The music video is expected to launch on the National Unity Ministry’s Youtube account before Aug 31.

-- BERNAMA