KUALA LUMPUR: Which is more disturbing? A politician playing doctor in a hospital ward? Or claiming his job is akin to that of a doctor?
Meet Sungai Manik assemblyman Datuk Zainol Fadzi Paharudin. The Wawasan Perak coordinator posted this on his Facebook page earlier today:
Rasa kerja dah lebih kurang sama dgn Dr – Dr Merawat Penyakit dan Memberi Penyelesaian dgn Ubat dan Rawatan – Yb Merawat Masalah Kehidupan dan Membantu Mengurus Cara Penyelesaian dan Beri Ubat W…
(It feels like the job is more or less the same as a doctor’s. Doctors treat illnesses and provide solutions through medication and treatment. YBs (elected representatives) treat life’s problems, help manage how to solve them, and prescribe the remedy.)
Health Ministry officials are scrambling to establish the incident after being alerted by this writer. One ministry staff member’s “OMG” response said it all.
Hospitals, particularly public hospitals, have strict policies prohibiting photography and videography in wards. This is to protect patients’ privacy and safeguard hospital security.
Yet here is a man in a white coat, complete with a stethoscope and what appears to be an official tag, poring over a file. Whether it contains a patient’s medical records – which are private and confidential – remains unclear.
One could dismiss the stunt as juvenile, no different from people pretending to be police officers, commandos or superheroes in AI-generated images.
Or consider the gulf between politicians and doctors, who work long hours treating patients and saving lives. They are the real superheroes, minus the capes and ridiculously tight outfits (think Superman or Wonder Woman).
Whether the Health Ministry will issue a statement remains to be seen. Officials may be trying to identify the hospital and establish who provided the doctor’s coat for the Facebook stunt by ‘Dr Zainol’.
Of course, elected representatives put in the hours and help people in their own way. But no politician can claim to walk in the shoes of a doctor – or any healthcare worker – unless they have the necessary qualifications and experience, let alone put in the gruelling hours, particularly in the emergency room.
Let this be a gentle reminder to politicians: stick to your lane.
Image: Zainol Fadzi/Facebook
