UNABLE to stomach the police’s bizarre defence of holding back an ambulance to give way to the prime minister’s convoy, prominent lawyer-activist Siti Kasim hit back by publishing a footage showing a foreign Government leader giving way to the ambulance.
In the video that runs about 40 seconds, it shows a Turkish policeman holding back the traffic, including an official vehicle of an unspecified Government leader, to allow an ambulance to move first.
As soon as the ambulance passed, only then the official vehicle of the Turkish leader and his entourage started moving again, followed by other vehicles.
Siti Kasim wrote: “Dear @ismailsabri60, this is how it should be done when emergency vehicles on the road. You give priority to them. Thank you.”
Over the weekend, a video went viral showing Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s convoy heading towards Hulu Langat to visit flood victims.
What caught public ire was that the traffic police even stopped an ambulance, so as to allow the fleet of Government vehicles to pass first.
Hulu Langat state assemblyperson Edry Faizal Eddy Yusof claimed that he was prevented by the police from entering one of the sites there, despite being the elected representative of the constituency.
However, the Selangor Traffic Investigations and Enforcement Department head Azman Shari’at defended the decision to prioritise the premier’s convoy, saying it was to prevent accidents.
“As depicted in the video clip, had the traffic police allowed the 4WD and ambulance to turn at the junction into the main road, there would be a risk of an accident and cause danger to road users.
“Therefore, the convoy on the main road was given priority to avoid any accidents, based on an initial assessment by the traffic police,” Malaysiakini reported him as saying, adding the police had acted in accordance with Road Traffic Rules 1959 and Road Transport Act 1987.
But DAP MP Wong Kah Woh hit back by citing Rule 9(1) of the Road Traffic Rules 1980, which states: “Any ambulance, fire engine, customs vehicle, police vehicle, prison vehicle or Road Transport Department vehicle shall when on urgent duty have the right of way over all other traffic…”
PM lacks empathy
On that note, netizens took to Twitter to lash out at Ismail Sabri and the police for trying to defend the indefensible.
User Donald Vincent added: “What a shame on us Malaysians that our leaders so so backward. Look at Indonesia and Jokowi. They used to admire us. Now they are setting the firsts.” – Dec 28, 2021.
