Single mum jailed for breaching MCO questions Zahid’s daughter’s fine

Nurul Hidayah Ahmad Zahid (right) was fined RM800 for breaching the MCO while single mum B Lisa Christina was initially jailed 30 days for a similar offence but had her sentence reduced to a RM1,000 fine on appeal.

PETALING JAYA: A single mother who was initially jailed for violating the movement control order (MCO) has questioned the court’s decision to only fine the daughter and son-in-law of former deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi RM800 for a similar offence.

B Lisa Christina, whose jail term was substituted with a fine of RM1,000 on appeal, asked why there were double standards when it came to the punishment, highlighting that Nurul Hidayah Ahmad Zahid and Saiful Nizam Mohd Yusoff’s fines were lower than hers.

“During the eight days in jail, I felt so shattered because I was unable to see my son and felt so embarrassed. I even had to borrow from my mother RM1,000 to settle the penalty.

“Today, I read that Zahid’s daughter was just given a RM800 fine for an even bigger offence and no jail term given.

“Am I a second class citizen to this nation? Why these double standards? I need an explanation for this,” she said in a Facebook post today.

Lisa, who has a six-year-old son, was sent to Kajang prison after pleading guilty to the charge before a magistrate in Petaling Jaya.

Living in a fifth-floor apartment unit, she had gone down to buy a packet drink at a nearby shop and stopped to chat with three others before returning home, when she was caught by police.

Her jail term was substituted with the fine after the judge took into account that she was a first-time offender and had been in prison for eight days.

Those found flouting the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases (Measures within Infected Local Areas) Regulations are liable to a maximum fine of RM1,000, jail of up to six months, or both.

Earlier today, Nurul Hidayah and her husband were fined RM800 each after pleading guilty to breaching the MCO.

The issue surfaced after Nurul posted pictures of her and Saiful along with Deputy Environment Minister Ahmad Masrizal Muhammad and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri on her Instagram account on April 20.

Deputy public prosecutor Nur Ashikin Mokhtar noted that the offence had taken place under phase three of the MCO, urging the court to impose a deterrent sentence that would include a jail term. - FMT