A seemingly forgotten national controversy over a university student's parody of the national anthem was given a new lease of life today by the Puteri Umno chief Noraini Ahmad who described it as "insulting and uncouth".

"Puteri strongly protests the actions of a Malaysian student in Taiwan under the name of Namewee, which insulted Islam and the Malay race in his lyrics.

"The song that he composed and caused outrage among many quarters, particularly among the Malays," said Noraini in the policy speech today.

Noraini was referring to 24-year-old Muar-born Wee Meng Chee, over the his popular but controversial six-minute Internet music- video clip titled Negarakuku .

This was the first time the issue had been brought up in public in recent months.

The issue was first highlighted in July when the Internal Security Ministry announced that Wee was being investigated for breach of the National Anthem Act.

Following this, numerous Umno leaders attacked Wee over the issue with some calling for his citizenship to be revoked.

Following weeks of intense pressure, Wee withdrew the video clip from the Internet and also tendered an open apology , but the government had vowed to take action against him upon his return.

Today, Noraini stressed that Puteri Umno rejected Wee's apology because his actions were considered "extreme, insulting and uncouth".

"We should not compromise with anyone who belittled the religion, integrity and nation's sovereignty. Every Malaysian must be fully responsible for their attitude and ignorance," she said.

Tighten noose on blogs

In a related matter, Noraini also said that there had been many abuses of technology and blogs which instigated the public to go against national leaders, the King and Islam.

She also expressed regret that some blogs had been used to raise the issues of corruption pertaining to the country's main enforcement bodies.

"We regret the action of blogs that raise the corruption issues involving the police and the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) because it can affect public confidence towards these enforcement agencies.

Noraini said that there was a problem with false information being widespread on the Internet and it is shaping the minds of youth who disregard the veracity of the information.

"Puteri urge that relevant laws, such as the Sedition Act, Internal Security Act, Official Secrets Act and the Printing Presses and Publications Act, be fully enforced on blog owners who can cause racial and religious tensions," she said.

Noraini also said that the younger generation should also be given the chance to air their views in diverse fields as they are the second echelon leaders who will determine the nation's destiny.

She said the potential and ability of the younger generation to voice out their opinions should not be "killed" or "chopped off" but instead be accorded ample opportunities from the beginning.

"Voices of today's younger generation are not often heard compared to the elders as theirs are considered sceptical views," she said.

"In fact, their way of thinking maybe better than the elders," she told 771 delegates attending the one-day assembly.