22,270 Participants At April 28 Rally, Says Rais

KUALA LUMPUR, May 21 (Bernama) -- The total number of people who joined the public rally in the federal capital last month was 22,270 and not hundreds of thousands as claimed by the opposition, Information, Communications and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said.

He said the figure on the attendance at the April 28 rally was arrived at by the Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) by using the photographic blocking system.

"It was 22,270, quite near to the BBC configuration (25,000) but it was certainly way off (the mark) from what (PKR advisor and Opposition Leader) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced to the rest of the world.

"In that regard, we would like to say this: be truthful on the strength of a crowd that attends any function.

"And the idea of glamourising it to be in the hundreds of thousands is not only a little bit mischievous but also a big misrepresentation to Malaysians and to the rest of the world," he said after launching a basic course on the new media to members of Mubarak (Malaysian Council of Former Elected Representatives) and Umno veterans, here Monday.

Dr Rais welcomed those who were anxious to know how the figure was arrived at to have a look at the way Bernama did it.

"We could actually count the heads on every centimetre of the graph on the photograph.

"We are more inclined to accept that kind of estimate rather than the glamourising type which we have been receiving from the PKR quarters," he said.

Asked whether it was the government official's figure, he said the figure which Bernama came up with was more logical and reliable and close to the estimate given by the BBC.

Dr Rais also said that he would be happy to have an independent body certify it if anyone was interested because it could be the yardstick for the future.

"I would strongly suggest that every time there is a big crowd, this method is applied so that the public actually gets a fair idea of the crowd size," he said.