KUCHING: Since cinemas here started playing the national anthem before the start of movies, there has been a noticeable increase in the number of moviegoers.
MBO Cinema manager Adrian Boon was pleasantly surprised and puzzled by the increase.
“It could be due to the fact that some moviegoers just came to experience it,” Boon told The Borneo Post yesterday.
He said his staff collected the national anthem trailer and two patriotic songs from the National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (Finas) here on Aug 30 evening, and they started playing them during the midnight show later that evening.
Boon observed that the audience responded to the playing of the ‘Negaraku’ enthusiastically.
“The response has been very good. The audience stood up automatically. We had observed that no one sat down when the national anthem was played.”
Meanwhile, Lotus Five Star Riverside Cinema assistant manager Mohd Aimam Abdullah said they started playing the national anthem in the afternoon on August 30.
“Although the trailer carried the instruction of standing up when the National Anthem was being played, we still sent our staff to monitor it.
“Initially some did not stand up and our staff advised them to do so politely. All obliged. After that, there was no problem,” said Aimam.
On the latest announcement that the government was considering extending the playing of the national anthem in cinemas beyond Sept 3, Aimam said Finas officers had not confirmed the new directive and they advised him to wait for official instructions from the relevant authorities.
Boon, however, said he had not received any instruction with regards to screening the national anthem beyond Sept 3.
Local cinema operators have been instructed by Communications and Multimedia Ministry through Finas to screen a trailer of national anthem and two promotional short clips ‘Tanah Tumpahnya Darahku’ and ‘Pesana Terakhir’ before the start of any movie from August 28 to Sept 3 in conjunction with National Day celebration.
A national daily, however, quoted Communications and Multimedia Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek as saying that the government would review the feedback from moviegoers, and was considering extending the period.