"Minister of Malaysia Apologizes for Ignoring Quarantine Guidelines, Donates Four Months' Salary"

View of Kuala Lumpur KLCC from the 58th floor of IB Tower

A Malaysian minister who was criticized for ignoring quarantine guidelines related to COVID-19 prevention has officially apologized and pledged to donate four months' worth of salary.

According to the Singapore daily The Straits Times on the 23rd, Mohamad Khairuddin Aman Razali, Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities, announced the day before that he would donate his four months' salary to the government's COVID-19 fund.

He has already paid a fine of 1,000 ringgit (about 280,000 KRW) for violating quarantine measures.

Minister Mohamad said, "I apologize to all Malaysians for the mistake I made," and added, "As a minister, I have the responsibility to follow the prevention regulations and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)," expressing his intention to donate.

Malaysian authorities have implemented quarantine measures including COVID-19 testing and 14-day isolation for those returning from overseas, with a second test before release from quarantine to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

However, Minister Mohamad attended the National Assembly on the 13th of the same month after returning from a four-day business trip to Turkey on the 7th of last month. He also posted photos on social media showing him meeting people outside.

In response, the opposition officially raised the issue, saying, "Why is he given special treatment? He put many people at risk."

Minister Mohamad then explained through aides that he tested negative on the day of his return and also tested negative on the second test before attending the National Assembly.

However, citizens criticized this as a "double standard." A man in Kuala Lumpur even filed a police complaint against Minister Mohamad on the 19th for violating quarantine obligations.

Meanwhile, according to the real-time statistics site Worldometer on the same day, Malaysia's cumulative COVID-19 cases stand at 9,257. The recent daily new cases have been around 10.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.