Rumours Spark Petrol Panic, Only in SABAH

This is bad. The history of terrible traffic jam re-occurred again, but only happened in Sabah today. Some interior areas like Keningau, queues reached up to 2km, while some petrol kiosks ran out of supply. The rumours of all the petrol kiosks in Malaysia closing down for three days, because kiosk dealers nationwide were protesting and demanding for higher fuel commissions, as fuel business nowadays making harder and harder. In fact, they just want to decline credit card zeh.

According to the petrol station owner, the traffic jam was started since 12.30pm, and the rumours were dismissed by The Star Web Site around 5.30pm. Since there is not many people seeing newspaper online in Sabah, the traffics are still tense around 6.45pm, when I was on my way back home. I guess it should be end by now.

Luckily Sabah has not many vehicles around like KL.

I was surprise this rumours can caused many thousands of the motorists paniced and queued to fill up the fuel. If we think logically, why many Sabahans believed such rumours, which was not being announced or reported by media and government? For me, they are not fool definitely, because the 2 main reasons below.

The government apparently were not doing their job well. They should have a channel to clear the rumours, or at least an hotline/channel for people to verify whether the news is true or just a rumours. And they should inform the motorists ASAP via proper channel like Digi/Maxis/Celcom SMS, government web sites, require every petrol station put up the notification. Damn, they do it only when it was late. It caused many of the Sabahans wasted their fuels to queue for fuel, and stuck in the traffic jam! It looks true when the first case of 78cents - RM1 fuel price hiked happened in reality. It just made thing worse! I felt very uncomfortable with the existing government situation now.

When you see more and more people filling up at petrol station, and when you see your car's fuel tank is less than a quarter, further you heard rumours and received sms from someone you trust that the petrol kioks will be shut down for few days, you will definitely panic and join the motorists' troop. I can totally understand their situation. We are just lucky because we can online and check the latest news from online newspapers and msn to each other.

What surprised me is that, even after the rumours were dismissed, some motorists still want to continue to queue and they said they don't want to take the 'risk', wtf.

Come on, we only queue for food here.

Okay, I'm not emotional here. But, do you know who spread the rumours? I hope it can be find out soon, let's see newspaper/news on coming few days. The one who spread the rumours is/are smart, I just assume as 'they'. They managed to think of a brilliant reason, which can get bunched of Sabahans in panic and rush to the petrol kioks again! Sabah transportation system is the poorest in Malaysia, so they found the right target this time. Fortunately it's only involves in Sabah, phew.

Some parties definitely benefits from this rumours.
1) Petrol kiosks onwers in Sabah (with such rumours, they can huge profit in just a day, thanks to the one who spread rumour and PDA president Abdul Wahid Bidin).
2) Mobile Service Telco - Digi/Maxis/Celcom (they can laugh for the whole day today).

So what's the lesson of this rumours to us?
1) Don't panic and simply listen to rumours, especially from SMS, unless it's proved from newspaper/government/our PM/CM.

2) Don't simply SMS to others when you receive rumours.

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