AS COVID-19 escalates to alarming levels, the Government announced that it would not lockdown the whole nation as it would affect lives and livelihoods.
However, Senior Minister (Security) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced several enhancements to the standard operating procedures (SOP) and enforcement to ensure the pandemic rise is stemmed.
“We will be setting a special task force involving members from the Health Ministry (MOH), Finance Ministry, International Trade and Industry (Miti), National Security Council (NSC) and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) to look into how to balance lives and livelihoods.
“For now, we will enforce and enhance SOP from social gathering to economic sectors, including adding more roadblocks to restrict movements,” he said, in a joint press conference with MOH director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.
On the enhanced SOP targetting economic sectors, Ismail Sabri added the following:
- Government staffers will be working at 20% from office (WFO). The balance 80% will be working from home (WFH) and details will be announced by the Chief Secretary to the Government.
- As for the private sector, 60% of them will be working from office while the rest will be from home. Details will be announced by Miti.
- All retails outlets, shops and hawker stalls will be restricted to operate from 8am to 8pm, except pharmacies where it will be allowed to operate until 10pm.
- Shopping malls and retail outlets must enforce the use of the MySejahtera application and limit number of visitors.
- Public transport will only be allowed to take passengers at a 50% capacity, with its frequency reduced
- Hotspots Identification for Dynamic Engagement (HIDE) system will continue to be used to identify potential cluster areas, with high-risk areas being shut down immediately.
On that note, Ismail Sabri urged the public to practice “self-lockdown”, by restricting their own movements to the bare necessary to reduce risk of getting infected.
“Yes, I agree that a total lockdown would help us flatten the COVID-19 curve faster. After the numbers fall, we will relax rules again, which will give rise to the number of cases again. But then, we will have to lockdown again.
“My point is, we will not be able to stem the pandemic if we’re not self-disciplined enough to follow SOPs. We all have a part to play and be responsible for it,” the Bera MP stressed.
He added that a full lockdown will affect many, especially daily wage earners and those from the B40 community badly.
“I’m sure we have heard stories about how families were eating rice with salt water during MCO 1.0. Petty traders rely on daily income to sustain their lives. All these must be considered,” Ismail Sabri quipped.
On claims that the Government was siding big businesses and tycoons, the minister said that if they were forced to close down, not only would it affect employers but also ordinary staff members as well.
“During MCO 1.0, nearly 800,000 people lost their jobs. So, we don’t want a repeat of that and focused on tightening SOP,” he added.
Former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has been a proponent of a total lockdown, even accusing the Government of siding big businesses and tycoons by allowing their premises to operate.
On related matter, Noor Hisham urged the public to impose “self-lockdown” for at least the next two weeks to reduce daily COVID-19 infections.
“The two weeks will also help to stockpile our medical supplies and help us plan increase capacity to treat COVID-19 cases better.
“And the cases we have now are those before the Hari Raya holidays. So please, if you have nothing urgent to do, stay at home,” he remarked. May 22, 2021.
