THE deputy health minister should set an example while the country is subject to a movement control order, said Umno vice president Mohammed Khaled Nordin.

Khaled is commenting on the outrage that erupted on social media when photos of Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali having a meal in close proximity with about a dozen people at a school in Perak surfaced. Noor Azmi, who is the Bagan Serai MP from Bersatu, posted the photos on Facebook, but later deleted them when people pointed out that he was violating MCO rules on social distancing.  

Khaled said there should not be different sets of rules for leaders and the public.

“It is not just any deputy minister but the deputy minister of health who is not showing a good example during the MCO.

“In other countries such as New Zealand, their health minister resigned because he violated their lockdown, and the public in other countries are also expressing their anger towards the UK housing minister and the South African communications minister for the same reason.

“We do not want to have a different set of rules. The leadership must show a good example,” Khaled said in an Instagram post today.

Addressing the growing chorus of complaints, Senior Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said nobody, including those in government, is above the law.

“Nobody is above the law. I understand that there have been police reports and we will leave it to police to carry out investigations,” said the senior minister in his daily press briefing in Putrajaya today.

However, he did not name any Perikatan Nasional leader or the type of action to be taken against them.

Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali drew flak today over photos of him having a meal with more than a dozen people at a Perak tahfiz school, in breach of a ban on public gatherings.

The photos were shared on Noor Azmi’s Facebook page before they were taken down. The account appears to have been deleted but screenshots of the pictures have been circulated by social media users.

The Malaysian Insight is contacting the Bersatu politician for comment.

In one photo, Noor Azmi wears a mask as he hands over a donation to the Lenggong mahaad tahfiz.

Terengganu Menteri Besar Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar also drew flak after posting on Twitter about a visit to his predecessor’s home.

“Many thanks to (former Terengganu MB) Ahmad Said who received my visit today on Friday, April 17, 2020, and then we enjoyed a lunch together.

“Alhamdullilah, we got to discuss the current situation in Terengganu and Malaysia in a cheerful and harmonious environment,” Samsuri said in a tweet.

He also posted four pictures, among which included one where they were sharing a meal.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Mustapa Mohamed also removed social media posts describing his visits to constituents in Jeli during the MCO.

The MP, who is known as Tok Pa, had posted pictures of him at the homes of several elderly residents in his parliamentary seat in Kelantan. – April 18, 2020.