There were snake shows, a concert featuring local artistes, cultural performance, sports activities and even a 'discount' for those paying traffic compound fines at a national anti-drug campaign which kicked off in Kuala Lumpur last week.

What especially raised eyebrows, however, was a big booth set up for the sole purpose of recruiting members for Puteri Umno. Other booths were for traders to sell corsets, girdles and body contour gel among other items.

The anti-drug campaign, dubbed Karnival Enam Jahanam (Six Evils Carnival) was held for six days along busy Jalan Masjid India in Kuala Lumpur from last Tuesday. It was launched by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Jointly organised by the internal security ministry and Umno's anti-drug bureau, the campaign was aimed at combating the six common drugs used by addicts - heroin, cocaine, ecstasy, cannabis, syabu and morphine. Hence the name enam jahanam .

Of the dozens of booths, only a handful were related to the anti-drug awareness campaign. During an hour-long visit to the site last Saturday, malaysiakini observed that visitors to these booths ( photo ) were few and far in between.

The crowd was more enthralled with booths selling various consumer goods, as well as the entertainment programe.

Although the organisers claimed that about 100 booths had been set up, not more than 50 were seen.

Umno's young women's wing was allocated a booth with a dazzling pink and white banner proclaiming a 'membership counter for Puteri Umno Malaysia'.

Staff of the Federal Territory Puteri Umno were at hand to assist new members in completing the forms, against a backdrop display of the distinct pink uniform of members and other items.

'Many' join Puteri

One worker said the counter had attracted "many" young women to join Puteri Umno, but could not provide an exact number of new applications received.

Opposition Parti Keadilan Rakyat Youth leader Latheefa Koya said, when contacted, that this was an inappropriate venue for recruitment of members.

"The counter has nothing to do with the anti-drug message...it was merely for recruitment purpose. This is too much. Puteri Umno was using government money to promote the party," she said.

A spokesperson for the campaign secretariat said profits made by traders - who were given booths on request - would not be channelled into the anti-drug fund.

She also said the campaign was organised along the lines of the hugely popular 'Sure Heboh' carnival sponsored by private television station TV3. It had sparked off a heated debate in Muslim circles last year, on grounds of morality.

After Kuala Lumpur, the carnival will go on a roadshow, with the next stops tentatively fixed at Terengganu and Penang.

When launching the campaign, the premier had said the drug problem is at a "dangerous level" and that it was a menace to society.

Last year, 38,672 addicts were identified, of whom 28,052 were between the ages of 19 and 30 while 1,255 were between 13 and 18. There were 19,810 new addicts, while 18,862 were repeat offenders.