When Science, Technology and Innovation Minister, Khairy Jamaluddin fell into a ditch and injured himself, the nation was in an uproar. More than concern over the minister’s health, Malaysians were angrier towards the Kuala Langat roadworks department (JKR) who immediately issued an apology towards the minister.
JKR Kuala Langat memohon maaf ke atas kejadian yang menimpa YB. Menteri dan akan mengambil tindakan segera ke atas isu berkenaan dan mendoakan YB cepat sembuh.
— JkrKualaLangat (@JkrKualaLangat) December 27, 2020
Soon after, netizens called out JKR Kuala Langat for their swift apology and subsequent repairs of the pothole on 28 December. Some netizens said that they had gotten into many accidents before involving potholes and have lodged multiple complaints. However, the pothole was never repaired and their complaints were ignored. They compared their own experience to KJ’s where the roadworks department replied to him and has promised to tackle the issue ASAP.
In line with that, a netizen who wishes to remain anonymous posted on their Twitter account asking a simple question, “Do politicians lives matter more?”.
“I’m sorry that happened to you, YB, but immediately when someone of your status gets into a common accident, JKR panics and starts to act. My sister’s colleague died running over a pothole and left a pregnant wife. No apology or redress by JKR. Do politicians’ lives matter more?”
Clarifying further, the netizen said the man fell off his motorcycle on the highway to Cyberjaya presumably caused by uneven road surfaces or while trying to avoid said potholes. He died when a vehicle ran over him after he fell off.
“Nonetheless, unsafe roads is still an issue that demands national attention. My only hope is that a more rigorous approach to having safer roads is properly highlighted in light of a rakyat’s sufferings, and not only a politician’s tweet.”
Malaysians in the comment section sympathized with the poster and one even pointed out that incidents involving potholes are not “accidents” but pure negligence on the part of the authorities responsible for proper road maintenance.
Is this a valid question, how many common people would need to die for the authorities to care? What do you think? Let us know in the comments section.
