From 'Happy Malaysia' to 'Malaysia Madani', how well do govt slogans work?

For Malaysians throughout the country, government slogans are part and parcel of daily life, from the very first slogan of "Happy Malaysia", introduced by Tunku Abdul Rahman, to the latest of "Malaysia Madani", launched by Anwar Ibrahim.

Such slogans are introduced by each prime minister in turn, as a branding mechanism for their administrations. 

How effective these slogans are, experts say, depends on a multitude of factors. 

"It's all abstract," public relations expert Syed Arabi Syed Abdullah Idid told MalaysiaNow. 

"One indicator might be how well the slogan is accepted by the people. In Malaysia, people normally just take whatever slogans come their way." 

Another factor would be the extent to which the slogan is discussed in academic circles and among NGOs, Syed Arabi, of the International Islamic University Malaysia, said. 

"The more discussions there are, the more publicity it gets, and the more it might be received by the public." 

But while some slogans might become integrated in public life, he added, this was no guarantee of continuity for the government in question. 

"Take 1Malaysia for example," he said, referring to the slogan introduced by the sixth prime minister, Najib Razak. 

"It became well known, but it did not bring victory for Najib and Barisan Nasional." 

Tunku Abdul Rahman's "Happy Malaysia" was followed by Abdul Razak Hussein's "Malaysia Terus Membangun", while Dr Mahathir Mohamad introduced the "Bangsa Malaysia" motto and Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, "Islam Hadhari".

Political analyst Jeniri Amir meanwhile said that each prime minister introduces his own slogan in order to make a clean break with his predecessor. 

"If they keep the slogans or ideas of previous prime ministers, it looks like they have no legacy or are out of ideas," Jeniri, of Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, said. 

"They want to create their own legacy and branding, and their own identity."

Jeniri, too, agreed that many factors come into play in determining the success of a particular slogan. 

"Mahathir had 22 years to promote the Bangsa Malaysia slogan, far longer than, say, Ismail Sabri Yaakob or Muhyiddin Yassin," he said. 

"It was also accompanied by programmes and initiatives – Wawasan 2020, the Look East policy, and the New Industrialisation." 

1Malaysia meanwhile became ingrained partly due to its logo and use in the various 1Malaysia initiatives. 

"Abdullah meanwhile never converted his 'Islam Hadhari' slogan into anything concrete, and Ismail had no time to develop his 'Keluarga Malaysia'," Jeniri said. 

Ismail was the shortest serving prime minister, spending just a year and three months in Putrajaya. 

And with every change in leadership, Jeniri said, the slogans would change as well. 

Anwar, Malaysia's 10th prime minister, introduced the "Malaysia Madani" concept after taking office late last year. 

Under "Malaysia Madani", the government's cash aid programme was rebranded as Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah, and Menu Rakyat 1Malaysia was converted to Menu Rahmah.