THE Malaysian Shopping Malls Association (PPK) lauded the government’s move to not disclose the names of establishments which recorded cases of COVID-19.
Its president Tan Sri Teo Chiang Kok said revealing the names of such premises would cause unnecessary panic and stigma not only against the establishments, but also the victim and those working there.
“The incident of a COVID-19 affected person can be anywhere and the point of contracting cannot be determined easily, compounded with the fact that most of the people contracting it are asymptomatic.
“Furthermore, a significant number of the tests results have been determined to be wrong upon second screening.
“Based on these experience, it’s quite unnecessary to cause panic by revealing the names of the establishment, where an employee has tested positive for COVID-19,” he told FocusM.
Recently, Health Ministry director general Tan Sri Noor Hisham Abdullah said he would no longer reveal the name of premises which have recorded COVID-19 cases.
The official made the decision saying he did not want to cause panic and stigma among the public.
Defending Noor Hisham’s move, Teo said it would be more effective if the Health Ministry carry out their contact tracing effectively and quarantine those who had close contact with the business operator involved.
“They should also conduct cleansing and sanitisation process of the premise and common areas. With this, all necessary actions would have been taken without stigmatising the victim, their co-workers and the establishment.
“Plus, it will not cause panic or irreparable damage to the business,” he added.
On related matter, Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) urged Noor Hisham to be transparent on COVID-19 data to curb the spread of fake news.
“Failure of the State to disclose vital information will lead to ‘infodemic’, where disinformation and misinformation will spread due to lack of reliable data.
“It’s time we get rid of this deep-rooted culture of secrecy. The government must be forthcoming with its data so we can also do our part to flatten the curve,” noted its executive director Wathshlah G Naidu. – Oct 26, 2020
