FORMER Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak appealed to the Government to provide aid to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) struggling to make ends meet during the total lockdown.
“I just wish that the Government had imposed a strict nationwide lockdown in January, exactly like the first movement control order (MCO) last year, for 45 days with financial aid given.
“The plan for MCO 2.0 was daily infection cases to drop to two-digit in May. Are we going to extend the lockdown if we fail?” he asked, in a Facebook post.
Two days ago, Prime Minister Mahiaddin Yassin unveiled the National Recovery Plan Strategy, aimed at reopening the country post-COVID-19.
In the plan, Mahiaddin projected that Malaysians would be fully vaccinated by end of October, with the nation reopening in four phases.
He explained that transition from the first phase in the form of full movement control order (FMCO) to the second phase will take place once the average infection rate drops below 4,000; the public health system is no longer in critical state (bed usage at ICU returned to moderate level) and 10% of the population have received two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.
“As a transition from the first phase, expect stringent social and movement restriction. Economic activities will be re-opened gradually with workforce capacity up to 80% at premises,” the PM said. “Social-oriented activities and inter-state travelling will remain prohibited.”
Meanwhile, the fourth and final phase in the National Recovery Plan will see the re-opening of all economic with more social activities allowed; the same applies to interstate travels and domestic tourism but subject to strict standard operating procedures (SOPs).
Stubborn and out of touch
However, many quarters panned the prime minister’s plan, saying it lacked details needed on how the Government plans to speed up the slow mass vaccination programme and ideas on how rebuild not only the economy but also the education and social sectors.
Unimpressed with his former deputy’s plan, Najib said that many businesses which were categorised as non-essentials has been closed since April.
He added that under the latest plan, these businesses will not be allowed to operate for few more month to come, with the tourism sector only reopening end of the year.
“But is the aid provided by the Government sufficient to help them weather the storm for another few more months?
“They still need to pay utility bills, on top of having their kids studying at home. Forget paying rent, would they even have money to buy food for themselves?” the Pekan MP queried. – June 17, 2021.
