TWITTER users protesting the country’s state of affairs where Covid-19 cases are spiking and parliament is suspended under a state of emergency marked the first day of Hari Raya Aidilfitri today with an online protest using the hashtag #BerayaDiJalanraya.

From noon onwards, people posted photos of themselves, some with family members, holding signs showing the hashtag as well as #KerajaanGagal (failed government) to express their unhappiness with the Perikatan Nasional (PN) administration.

“This is not to say we should be out today, but to highlight (that) we shouldn’t have to be at this state if we had taken the right actions, & learnt from the past,” tweeted @NurAzre.

“We (have) been in darurat (emergency) since early 2021 & if the SOPs were clear & strictly maintained, without any adjustments to suit people in power, we would (have) been able to go back to our kampung for Raya.

“But nooo ... MCO SOPs kept changing daily, thus we are forced to #BerayaDiJalanraya,” tweeted another user called Mayna Patel.

The online protest was organised by the same group, Sekretariat Solidariti Rakyat (SSR), that held the recent “Buka puasa, buka Parlimen” protest at the gates of Parliament House on April 30.

Parliament is suspended under the emergency, which was declared January 12, ostensibly for the government to curb the Covid-19 pandemic, but critics have accused Putrajaya for wanting to avoid checks and balances.

The government’s reason for the emergency has also been thrown into doubt, with many calling it at outright failure as daily Covid-19 cases are now peaking at above 4,000 and intensive care units at hospitals are almost full.

Malaysia is also under a nationwide lockdown, dubbed MCO 3.0, until June 7. Many people are unable to return to their hometowns for Hari Raya due to inter-district and interstate travel bans, and are spending the festive season away from their families and loved ones.

SSR organisers in Twitter posts said the #BerayaDiJalanRaya protest was to show how the PN government has failed in tackling the pandemic.

They urged social media users to take a photo of themselves with their protest signs and post them on social media starting 12.30pm today.

A Twitter user with the handle @fiqahwithwords explained why she took part in the protest: “Some people are hurting from being separated from their loved ones, especially during the festive season.

“#BerayaDiJalanRaya is for them. To say the protest is unnecessary is unfair to those far away from loved ones. This protest is for them.”

Another user, @sunsyaza, said people had to celebrate “Cov-Eid” because of the government, which has failed to control the number of infections and prepare solid standard operating procedures for the movement control orders.

Others blamed the government for celebrating their second Hari Raya under lockdown.

“As we celebrate this Hari Raya, don’t forget that we can’t meet our friends and family all because of #KerajaanGagal (Dalam kita merayakan Hari Raya ini, jangan kita lupa bahawa kita tak dapat berjumpa teman-teman dan keluarga kerana #KerajaanGagal),” said @amirxabdhadi.

Several Twitter users who took part in the protest were young activists, such as Qyira Yusri, a co-founder of Undi18.

“This year we #BerayaDiJalanraya – a mark of solidarity with all Malaysians who cannot return to their kampung (Tahun ini kita #BerayaDiJalanraya – tanda solidariti bersama semua rakyat Malaysia yang tidak dapat pulang ke kampung). 2 years of Raya (have) passed and #KerajaanGagal still cannot control Covid-19,” she said.

Muda party co-founder Thanussha Francis Xavier said that although Hari Raya is a festive occasion, the PN government’s decision has stirred the people’s anger.

“The people are bearing the consequences of such great failure. We are speaking up for the sake people, don’t wait until they rebel (Sudah gagal dengan teruk, rakyat yang menanggung akibat. Demi rakyat kami berpanas, jangan sampai rakyat mengganas).” – May 13, 2021.