A video of a man being issued a summons at a roadblock for using his phone while driving has been circulating heavily on the Internet, with many using the video out of context and telling a different story from what actually happened.
Many reports have deemed the video as having intentions to paint PDRM officers in a bad light with certain traffic officers claiming that the video was ‘twisting the facts’. Some reposters have even used the video to say that the man was stopped because his wife was sitting in the passenger seat (since it’s CMCO now).
Even Defence Minister Datuk Ismail Sabri commented on these claims and said that the situation was manipulated by the person who uploaded the video. “When I received the video, I immediately contacted the highest-ranking officer from IPD Bukit Aman and asked him about the situation,” he said.
“He told me that the video was deliberately made to defame the reputation of the police. The driver wasn’t fined because his wife was sitting next to him but because he was using his phone while driving.”
Reports have said that investigations are being conducted in accordance with Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, and if defamation is proven, the investigation will be opened under Section 500 of the Penal Code.
The story according to Eric Chia, the accused
WORLD OF BUZZ has since reached out to Eric Chia, the original poster, to get to the bottom of the issue and to clarify what unfolded during his encounter with the police officer.
Eric initially shared on Facebook that he was stopped at a roadblock on Jalan Dato Md Zain for allegedly using his phone while driving and was issued a summons by an officer who told him that his offence was “Sebelah kiri pakai handphone (using handphone with his left hand)”.
However, Eric clearly recalled that he was not using his phone and tried to explain to the officer that it was probably his wife that was using her phone with her right hand.
But the officer did not give Eric a chance to explain and asked for his Identification Card before writing out a summons.
“The police officer asked for my IC, so of course, I had to obey. He even walked behind my car and took down my number plate,” Eric told WORLD OF BUZZ.
Eric then asked the officer for proof that it was him who was using the phone, but the officer just told him to go to court and that all the ‘proof’ will be presented there.
Eric refused to sign the summons as he believed he had done nothing wrong, but instead, the officer signed the summons himself with an ETT (refused to sign).
At this point of time, Eric’s wife felt like her husband was being wrongfully accused and recorded the scenario to prove that he was not in the wrong.
But before she started recording the video, Eric said they asked the police officer for his consent to record the video and the officer gave his permission.
Eric then decided to post the video on Facebook along with a photo of the summons to ask the public for help.
Eric told WORLD OF BUZZ that he now has to attend a hearing in court and has since sought the help of YB Allex Seah, Melaka State Assemblyman who will be assisting him in this matter.
He has also made a police report on allegations that he was trying to defame the police and to deny certain accusations made against him.
He said that he did not make any other posting about the incident other than his initial post, which was solely to show that he was wrongfully being accused and to ask the public for help. He also denies allegations that he had quickly passed the phone to his wife after being stopped by the police, as reported by certain news outlets.
Eric said that he will be making a public statement today at a press conference.
What do you think of this issue? Let us know in the comments below.
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