Different strokes for different folks
“Action will be taken against anyone who violates SOP, no matter who they are. Even if that person is my son.”
- Defence Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob
Prophetic words indeed, but history tells us a different story.
Last April, Lisa Christina, a single mother, was produced before a magistrate and sentenced to 30 days' jail for breaching the movement control order (MCO) under the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases (Declaration of Infected Local Areas) Order 2020. She was only released after eight days in jail when the High Court revised the sentence and substituted it with an RM1,000 fine.
About the same time, one Nurulhidayah was charged for a similar offence and paid a fine of RM800, not before some drama outside the court when media personnel were barred from covering the proceedings.
If you did not know, she is the daughter of former deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamid and the disparity did not go unnoticed.
Lisa (above) took to Facebook and posted: "During the eight days in jail, I felt so shattered because I was unable to see my son and felt so embarrassed. I even had to borrow RM1,000 from my mother to settle the penalty.
“Today, I read that Zahid's daughter was just given an RM800 fine for an even bigger offence and no jail term given. Am I a second-class citizen to this nation? Why this double standard? I need (an) explanation for this.”
No one explained that the penalty or the quantum of the fine is at the discretion of the court, which takes into account several factors before making a decision. In the absence of clarification, the public assumed titled people get some “leeway” or “lenience”. They were not far from the truth.
A few months later, Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Khairuddin Aman Razali was fined RM1,000 for breaching Covid-19 quarantine rules after he returned from a holiday in Turkey.
He apologised and vowed to donate his ministerial salary from May to August to the country's Covid-19 fund.
No court appearance, no hassle of entering a plea or mitigating but just a token punishment – a compound fine.
Khairuddin was in the news again. He was stopped at a roadblock in Terengganu on the fourth day of Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Terengganu police chief Roslee Chik said Khairuddin was stopped at a roadblock with another passenger in the car.
Postings on social media suggested he was in the company of a celebrity but he was quick to dismiss that he was in a relationship with her – but this is not the core issue.
It has been three weeks since the “police started investigations” and we have not heard anything. Bukit Aman CID director Kumar MM Sree said police have started an inquiry paper on the incident.
“We want to find out what actually happened at the roadblock and whether there was any offence. The relevant parties will be called up by the police to have their statements recorded,” he said.
People without authorisation letters are turned back at roadblocks but this man got to continue his journey without hassle. Is there something wrong with the system? Would the police seek to find out if an offence was committed when an unauthorised person is stopped at a roadblock?
Coming back to Ismail Sabri’s statement, it is not the action not being taken but what kind of action? Would Joe Public get the opportunities like Khairuddin and a police team to “find out what happened” at the roadblock?
Former Prasarana chairperson Tajuddin Abdul Rahman was fined RM1,500 for violating Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOP) by not wearing a face mask during a press conference.
Dang Wangi police chief Mohamad Zainal Abdullah said the amount was decided by the Attorney General’s Chamber (AGC) after the investigation paper was returned to the police.
Shouldn’t the burger seller who was fined RM50,000 and scores of others who were issued with compound fines be treated similarly – complete with investigation papers to the AGC?
What about the wife of a police officer who was slapped with an RM2,000 compound fine for breaching the MCO all because she wanted to send some food for her husband on duty at a roadblock on the first day of Aidilfitri?
“Initially, the wife’s action was seen as giving moral support to her husband, who was on duty at the Putrajaya-Dengkil roadblock.
“However, public interest must supersede personal wants. We don’t want such actions to be emulated by others to visit their family members while on duty in future,” Putrajaya district police chief Mohd Fadzil Ali was quoted as saying.
But was an investigation paper opened and submitted to the AGC in her case? No. Unlike Khairuddin and other VIPs, the notice was issued on the spot.
Last week, a deputy superintendent and an inspector were among four police officers who had gathered with nearly 30 others, including foreigners and women, at a hotel on Jalan Pinang. While the raid and the arrests were made public, it is still not known if they will be prosecuted or if the case has been classified as NFA (no further action).
The disparity and the methodology used in the quantum, especially for VIPs, compared with Joe Public is apparent. Certainly, there needs to be some rules or guidelines so that there is uniformity, irrespective of the offender’s status.
No one is above the law is an over-used cliche. But it is a highly accepted principle in law that those in office should be held to a higher standard of compliance.
Then, shouldn’t the offending VIPs get the full brunt of the law instead of a slap on the wrist? - Mkini
R NADESWARAN sees the need for the AGC to prepare a set of guidelines for police officers when they impose compound fines. Comments: citizen.nades22@gmail.com
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.
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