The next by-election will be taking place at Cameron Highlands on the 26th January 2019. To support the election campaign, the Malaysian Youth and Sports Minister, Syed Saddiq, in his capacity as the Youth Chief of BERSATU had driven himself to Cameron Highlands.
There was a tweet of himself refuelling at a Petronas station which had raised a couple of eyebrows. Usage of mobile phones at the pump is not allowed and you can see from the photo that there’s a warning sign about it as well.
The social media team at Petronas were aware of the situation and they had retweeted the tweet while reminding him that safety is a top priority and usage of phones are not allowed near the pump. The tweet also thanked other users for raising the concern.
It is worth pointing out that the Youth and Sports Minister wasn’t using a phone and it isn’t 100% certain that the photo was taken on a smartphone. While it is normal to assume that the tweet came from a phone, there’s also a possibility that the photo could be transferred from a digital camera.
Interestingly, some Petronas stations have updated their warning signs to indicate that mobile phones are now permitted in the vehicle. This can be seen at Petronas stations that support Setel mobile payment. The app allows you to pay for petrol on your smartphone but you’ll have to leave the device in the car before you go out to refuel.
While fires at the pump are easily blamed on smartphone usage, the main cause is usually static. The myth of smartphones causing fires has been debunked by mythbusters but the usage of phones while refuelling
UPDATE: @TeamSaddiq had responded to Petronas saying that they used a camera instead of a smartphone at the petrol pump.
