NEVER a day goes by where something stupid has to happen in the corridors of power, at the expense of average Malaysians.
Just today, at the time of writing, two major disruptions have occurred.
Firstly, Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Datuk Khairuddin Aman Razali got off scot-free for allegedly breaching quarantine.
The police, on instruction of the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC), received a “no further action” regarding Khairuddin’s case which still smacks of double standards.
To recap, he had gone to Turkey and returned home without undergoing self-quarantine and attended functions, among others a July 13 parliamentary session.
What’s baffling is that if Khairuddin didn’t flout such laws, why did the Health Ministry fine him RM1,000 for breaching quarantine?
But such privilege is lost on all of us. Two days ago, a former contractor was sentenced to 14 days’ jail and fined RM1,000 by the Melaka magistrate’s court for breaching self-quarantine rules.
The man went to work and shops after returning from Sabah to vote in the recent state election.
Secondly, International Trade and Industry Minister’s (Miti) confounding directive that a maximum of 10% of those in management and supervisory posts are allowed to work on site, following an albeit bizarre work-from-home order by the National Security Council (NSC) yesterday for sectors in areas under the conditional movement control order (CMCO).
The best part about this 10% directive is that it is non-binding, meaning affected companies need not apply for ministerial approval. So, there is no authority monitoring or enforcing these rules.
After yesterday’s NSC order, firms of all sizes got to work issuing guidelines, only to be boxed in the ears by Miti today.
Maybe the government thinks this is “okay” because it “only” affects 3.1 million people across Sabah, Labuan, Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Putrajaya.
If anything, this points to two things: a lack of coordination within Miti itself, which means from civil servants to minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali are disconnected, and there is a lack of communication between the NSC and stakeholders.
Did NSC issue yesterday’s work-from-home order without consulting the others and did Miti in response to the pushback by the business community try to pull a knee-jerk statement to appease the situation?
Everything about these developments point to the government’s inability to properly handle the Covid-19 crisis. If standards can’t be met, revise.
If laws are to be applied, enforce. If areas are suspected Covid-19 hotbeds, test.
Double standards at the expense of taxpayers point to one thing we are all familiar with but yet incapable of doing anything about – that Putrajaya, regardless of who is in charge, can afford to take the piss. – The Vibes, October 21, 2020
Emmanuel Samarathisa is executive editor at The Vibes.
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