Popular Indonesian actor and director Baim Wong has publicly backed Muar member of parliament Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman following the politician's passionate speech about severe air pollution at the Dewan Rakyat recently.
Sharing a video clip of Syed Saddiq's speech on Threads, the 'Benci Bilang Cinta' star called on the Indonesian government to take swift action over the transboundary haze.
"I must speak up because I care deeply about this country," Wong wrote, showing his support for Syed Saddiq.
The actor accused reckless individuals of starting forest fires in his country, and the haze has damaged Indonesia's reputation abroad besides inflicting serious health and financial hardship on people in the region.
"Our national reputation suffers, trust from other countries declines, economic regression sets in, and ultimately, it's the ordinary people who pay the price.
"Even someone like me, who knows little about politics, can understand this, so why aren't those in power taking action?"
Syed Saddiq had called for Asean members, especially Malaysia and Singapore, to lodge diplomatic protests and take legal action against those responsible for open burning.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd