S'gor Budget 2023: Unity ambassador programme to get RM300k funding

The Selangor government has allocated RM300,000 for the Selangor Unity Ambassador (DPS) initiative in order to advocate harmony among the diverse community in the state.

Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari announced this while he was tabling the state’s budget for 2023 in the state assembly today.

“A total of RM300,000 will be allocated specifically for the implementation of this DPS programme to ensure Selangor remains a state that has the spirit of unity and (where its people) can live together in harmony,” he said.

Earlier, Amirudin said Selangor was the first state to introduce such an initiative, which was started this year as a pilot project.

These unity ambassadors, who come from various ethnic backgrounds, are meant to drive the unity agenda among the local community and play the role of a “mediator of unity”.

The state government intends to broaden the DPS programme to every state constituency to ensure that advocacy can be done on a wider scale and at the grassroots level, the menteri besar added.

‘Kita Selangor’ unity grant

Amirudin acknowledged that this agenda to promote unity and harmony in the community requires continuous advocacy and campaigning.

To that end, the state government will allocate another RM300,000 for the ‘Kita Selangor’ unity grant, which is a special provision distributed to agencies, associations and NGOs that run activities and programmes related to unity.

“This grant is also meant to ensure that the messaging and advocacy related to unity can continue to be conveyed to the people of this state and have a good impact on the society,” he said.

This comes in the wake of rising racial tensions among the rakyat after GE15, mainly due to contentious social media posts.

The police and the Communication and Multimedia Commission have since repeatedly warned people not to misuse their online platforms in a manner that could lead to public unrest.

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