“I WONDER what’s the Madani thought process is like. Just last week she was involved in a road accident yet PMX (Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim) suddenly appointed Siti Nurhaliza as a road safety icon on Saturday (April 25),” penned Madani critic Datuk Eric See-To in a recent Facebook post.
“It feels a bit inappropriate for now. Why not appoint her as the icon of Tabung Haji instead?
Valid criticism by the former Barisan Nasional (BN) strategic communications deputy director given no stick is too small or inconsequential to use to beat the government of the day or otherwise, this latest salvo insinuates that the decision makers were somewhat star struck by the 45-year-old entertainer.
Editor’s Note: Siti Nurhaliza was involved in a multi-vehicle collision on the MEX Highway on April 16 while on her way home after performing at an event in Sepang
With regard to the mention of Tabing Haji by See-To, the Temerloh, Pahang-born songstress who is today Malaysia’s most influential and awarded artist had previously chided the purchase of land by the Pilgrims’ Fund Board from debt-laden 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) by labelling the deal as “shameful”.
The post has generated 3.3K likes, 504 comments and 208 shares at time of writing, denoting that Siti Nurhaliza still has pulling power whether for the good or worse.
To emphasise his point, See-To a.k.a. Lim Sian See who is often perceived as a loyalist of disgraced former premier and 1MDB protagonist Datuk Seri Najib Razak went on to dissect Siti Nurhaliza’s post-accident actions to underline her unsuitability to be an icon for road safety.
Sharing an image of the popular warbler standing near a road divider, it was pointed out that standing near the fast lane or in the middle of a divider was not smart as it could lead to more accidents. Best was to move far away from moving traffic was his advice.
The barely disguised snide remark found plenty of backers who also gleefully highlighted the National Songstress’s lack of road safety awareness and thus unsuitability for the role.
A perplexed motorist also asked how is it that someone who has a personal driver be elected as a road safety icon.
It was also surmised that despite a population of over 30 million Malaysians, it is the same old faces that get picked to be icons and ambassadors with the same old end results.
Some commenters were less kind by claiming that this was a get-rich scheme favouring the same personalities/celebrities.
This immediately led to the pertinent question as to how much this public relations exercise was costing the tax payer. The suggestion that Siti Nurhaliza may have volunteered her services for FREE was immediately laughed off.
There is a time and place for populist moves. But when the rakyat is struggling with a cost-of-living crisis exacerbated by spikes in fuel prices, any public expenditure is going to come under close scrutiny.
As surmised by a few commenters, this ambassadorial role would have cost the Road Transport Department (JPJ) a pretty penny.
It also reeks of a government more concerned about star power rather than actual results, leading one commenter to label the executive as a “kitchen cabinet” that made appointments on a whim.
As pointed out, this strategy was either poorly timed or tone deaf or worse, both. – April 29, 2026
Main image credit: Kosmo; Sinar Harian
