The Malaysian Insight

PUBLIC anger continues over what appears to be double standards for politicians who don’t follow safety standard operating procedures (SOPs) to prevent Covid-19 infection, such as masking in crowded public places.

Although the National Security Council (NSC) has made it obligatory to wear a mask, especially in crowded public places, since August, social media is awash with photos of politicians and ministers going bare-faced or wearing a mask improperly, drawing angry comments.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri is the latest government official to come under fire for flouting the rules.

A photo on his Facebook page shows him wearing a mask that did not cover his nose while speaking with a child at a Jakim event yesterday; another pictures him without a mask at an NSC meeting on October 3 chaired by the prime minister.

Twitter user @GlobalKid6 questioned government official’s flouting of rules that ordinary citizens were required to obey.

“On TV, you are good at teaching people to wear face masks, make laws for people who do not wear face masks, but you do not wear face masks during meetings? Why?”

@NutdyaO pointed out that many ministers appeared to be breaching the SOP on masks.

@Tg_haslinda asked Senior Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob why no action was taken against a particular minister who breached quarantine rules.

“Every day you announced that thousands of people are compounded (for breaking MCO rules). But you cannot even handle a minister who is not quarantined. This is really weak,” she tweeted.

It is likely she is referring to Plantation and Commodities Minister Khairuddin Aman Razali who was let off with a fine for skipping quarantine.

@Tg_haslinda’s tweet garnered 6.5k retweets, 5.2k likes and 73 comments, many of which slammed the authorities for practising double standards when meting out penalties to MCO offenders.

Lembah Pantai MP Fahmi Fadzil singled out Deputy Communications and Multimedia Minister Zahidi Zainul who appeared with his face uncovered at the launch of a digital entrepreneur programme on October 3. Photos were provided with the Twitter post which tagged the Health Ministry, director-general of health, and the prime minister’s public health special advisor.

@EpiphanyTan attached a photo of former prime minister Najib Razak wearing his mask wrongly while surrounded by people. “No compound for wearing a face mask this way?” the post read. 

@tirahhhh__ tweeted a direct reply to director-general of health Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, highlighting the non-compliance of ministers.

The reply was to Dr Noor Hisham’s tweet “How about all stay at Home for awhile again?”, to which @tirahhhh__ said: “Sir, this is very unfair for us (the people) who adhere to the SOP…But seems like now we are the victim(s) because of ignorant minister who put power above everything! Thought the SOP applies (to) ALL.”  – October 6, 2020.