Mariam Mokhtar: Politicians Are Not Covid-19 Heroes

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Healthcare workers are superior to politicians.

The only person in the defaced mural and who deserves to be called a hero is the DG of Health. The artist’s second mural shows the true heroes – frontline healthcare workers.

The people who express outrage at the recently vandalised mural in Shah Alam, need to have their heads examined.

The true heroes of the Coronavirus pandemic are not the politicians.

In artist Suhaimi Ali’s mural in Shah Alam, the only person who deserves to be called a hero is the Director-General of Health, Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

For instance, what was Hadi Awang’s role in stopping Coronavirus? To pray for our souls to reach heaven faster? I do not recall anything he said which was of substance.

The Ministry for Islamic Affairs. was initially reluctant to ban Friday prayers, in early March. If he had acted with more courage, the outbreak could have been further contained.

The lockdown or Movement Control Order (MCO) should have been strictly enforced and observed, with no exceptions. It does not matter if you are rich or poor, if you live in a fancy part of town or are a celebrity. If you have to socially distance and isolate, then you follow the strict rules. Once someone breaks the rules, then others will follow suit, because they will claim that their reason is just as important. No. No. No. What will they say if someone falls very ill, because they failed to strictly observe the lockdown? What if people die from Coronavirus, because of this lapse in judgement and tidak-apa attitude?

The real heroes are the medical frontliners – the nurses and doctors, the hospital cleaners, the lab assistants, the courier drivers who have to transport samples to the specialist laboratories, the ambulance drivers, the postal workers, the supermarket staff and delivery lorry drivers, the postal and courier workers, the people who test us, the policemen who keep control.

Some of the politicians broke the rules during lockdown. They did not set a good example to the rest of the community. They may have spread the Coronavirus. They showed us that two rules exist – one for them, and one for us. Should they still be called Coronavirus heroes? No. I don’t think so.

The children of some politicians also broke the rules and were not as severely punished as ordinary members of the rakyat. Is this fair?

Some Malaysians need to have a serious rethink about their politicians.

Many people wanted the people who defaced the murals to be punished. Are they aware in the first instance, that graffiti and some street art, is vandalism. Was permission sought before the walls were painted?

The publicity generated when the murals were defaced gave the artist instant and increased publicity. It is like banning books. The publicity generates so much interest that the writer need not pay for expensive advertising. Perhaps, the same is true for the artist.

Suhaimi’s second mural at Seksyen 4 Kota Damansara, depicts the true heroes.

The mural shows frontliners and first-responders who played an important role in the fight against Coronavirus, including food delivery riders, medical personnel, Bomba, police, RELA as well as the Director-General for Health, Dr Noor Hisham, against the Malaysian flag.

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Meanwhile in East Malaysia, a Sarawakian artist by the name of Leonard Siaw has paid homage to Malaysian first-responders and emergency workers for protecting the state of Sarawak, with a mural on the Eastern mall in Siburan. – Rebuilding Malaysia