GOVERMENT leaders must abide by the laws put in place by the administration, said former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the latest to join in the criticism against Perikatan Nasional leaders flouting the movement control order (MCO).

“The government ought to set a good example. They ought to follow the rules that they set themselves.

“However, it seems that they think they are special and don’t have to adhere to the government’s rules,” the Bersatu chairman said in a Facebook post tonight.

The Langkawi MP said Malaysia follows the rule of law and does not discriminate between politicians and members of the public.

“These rules are based on laws. No one should consider themselves as special and ignore the laws. This does not make for a good government,” he said in the short video.

His post comes after Deputy Health Minister Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali of Bersatu drew flak over photos of him tucking into a meal with more than a dozen people at a Perak tahfiz school, in breach of MCO rules barring public gatherings.

The photos were shared on Dr Noor Azmi’s Facebook page before they were taken down. The account, too, appears to have been deleted.

However, screenshots of the pictures have been posted by social media users.

In one photo, Dr Noor Azmi, who is also Bagan Serai MP, is seen wearing a mask as he hands over a donation to the Lenggong mahaad tahfiz.

In his Facebook post, he said the visit to the school was organised by Perak exco Razman Zakaria of PAS, and that the entourage was treated to lunch.

Other pictures showed Dr Noor Azmi seated on the floor in close proximity to other men, eating rice and other dishes laid out on mats.

Angry Twitter users slammed the deputy minister for flouting the MCO and not practising social distancing.

“Why are they allowed to break the rules? Are there different rules for the elite and ordinary people?” said @bobot34428509.

Another user, @ThisBirdy, tagged the police in a post that was captioned: “How about this? The people follow the MCO, the minister disobeys the MCO.”

“Do you expect the people to respect you?” said @Bedah52455067.

Later today, it surfaced that Deputy Rural Development Minister Abdul Rahman Mohamad was also found flouting the MCO while celebrating his birthday with his partymen.

The pictures of Rahman appeared to have been uploaded on Facebook on April 13, with screenshots of the post being widely shared on social media.

In the Facebook post, his followers wished him a “Happy Birthday” and hopes for a prosperous life. 

One of the pictures showed a group of visitors coming to visit him with a cake in tow. None of them wore face masks or practised social distancing. 

Earlier today, Senior Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob had said nobody, including those in government, was 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,” he said in Putrajaya today.

Meanwhile, Bernama reported that Perak police will record a statement from a state executive councillor and several other individuals who were seen in the viral pictures with the deputy minister at the tahfiz school.

State police chief Razarudin Husain said the individuals would be called up tomorrow.

“Perak police have also sought the help of Bukit Aman to record a statement from a deputy minister as he is currently in the federal capital,” he said.

He said preliminary investigations revealed that the deputy minister was conducting checks on the level of preparedness of Health Ministry staff in Lenggong in handling the Covid-19 outbreak.

The deputy minister was accompanied by the Perak state councillor, who is the owner of the tahfiz school. – April 18, 2020.