COMMENT | Ministers need to lead by example

COMMENT | A couple of days ago, Higher Education Minister Noraini Ahmad announced a TikTok competition for young people through her social media channels. The proposed competition, which was slated to take place from April 8-14, was promoted in a video featuring Noraini and two social media influencers, Norreen and Iskandar Rahman as well as a poster with photos of the three.

The video and poster were taken down after public backlash. The competition apparently has been cancelled. The reference of it can be found in the minister’s social media channel.

The complaint that many have with the competition is that the minister seems to have misplaced her priorities. As the higher education minister, she should be focusing on the welfare of students during the movement control order (MCO). Some students reportedly do not have enough food to eat, and yet the minister is promoting what is seen to be a frivolous competition.

Putting aside these objections, the biggest offence of the video to this writer is the lack of social distancing shown by the two influencers. In one scene, the...