Communications and Multimedia Deputy Minister Datuk Zahidi Zainul Abidin, who've been receiving backlash over multiple issues, has issued an official apology to Sabahan student Veveonah Mosibin at the parliament.

However, instead of pronouncing her name the way it should be said, he called her Vivi Misbun.

That's right, after thanking the Dewan for summoning him to issue the apology, the deputy minister went ahead to apologise for the "confusion" in the case of "adik Vivi Misbun" and the unhappiness caused by the information given by the Kudat MP.


You can also check out his apology at the live stream of the Parliament session on 10 September 2020.

We were not able to pinpoint the exact timing when this article was written because the session was still ongoing, but you can probably start looking after the 1:30 time mark.

They may have been misinterpretation, Zahidi said

Zahidi said that there might have been a misinterpretation of his opinion regarding the matter among the people in Pitas.

"There are internet centres and connectivity there, but it needs to be improved overall. What was expressed by adik Vivi is the weakness (internet connection weakness) in Kampung Sipatalang that needs attention from the government.

"However, as a father, I am of the opinion that sitting on a tree at night to get internet connection is an action that could endanger oneself," he said.

He added that even with our own children, we would advise against such actions for fear of injuries.


"The fight of adik vivi to show the lack of internet access in rural areas should be commended. I take full responsibility, and the government agrees, that this issue is the issue of internet accessibility in rural Sabah and that it should be given attention and addressed as well as possible."

He also said that MCMC had made a visit to Kampung Sipatalang on 15 June 2020 and found that there was a telco tower that provides 3G connectivity to 1.4 kilometres radius from the village that allows students to sit for online examinations.

He added that Telekom Malaysia had also visited adik Vivi's village on 19 June and had improved the connection at internet centres in Kampung Pinggan-pinggan, Pitas, Sabah in line with the request from residents.

"For the Dewan's information, both villages; one, the village she (Vevonah) lives in and one in the village where the issue happened... these two places we have improved and strengthened the connectivity in those places," Zahidi said.

He added that this shows that the government cares and solved the problem.

Zahidi also said that the village was located in a rural area and that it was challenging in terms of installation of fiber optic cables and maintenance.

"As I have mentioned before, MCMC is also working on a digital infrastructure plan, known as JENDELA (Jalinan Digital Negara) to strengthen connectivity throughout the country using various technology," he told the parliament.

He added that through the plan, it is hoped that all plans and the building of digital infrastructure will be made easy by all agencies involved, including at the state level.

"I pray that adik Vivi will excel in all her endeavours," he said.

Sounds like the authorities are actually doing something to fix the internet issues and that's great.

We also pray that Zahidi will get Veveonah Mosibin's name right the next time he speaks about her or anyone he's apologising to, really.