| Frankly, I find Senior Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s explanation within hours after the release of the conditional movement control order guidelines by the National Security Council (NSC) very confusing.

Even the law enforcers are confused with the requirement to register when they have to refill petrol.

In the first place, the police should know that we are not allowed to use a mobile phone anywhere near a petrol kiosk. In order to register with MySejahtera, you will need to physically walk towards the shop area.

Now, the minister seems to say that it is only for people who enter the shop. If that’s true, then, why does the NSC even bring this matter up, since the people would still have to register with MySejahtera in all other shops or outlets? Or is there any reason why petrol stations are singled out for the announcement?

The confusion is caused by people who set the guidelines but are unable to follow the rules themselves. This is creating a burden to the rakyat, especially those who have been issued a summon.

Will the summon be cancelled, and if the amount has been paid, will it now be returned since Ismail said it is not necessary, unless you enter the shop?

Till now, I am confused as to who to follow: the police, who have the power to issue the summons, or the minister?

What we really need are people who are more capable to handle the current pandemic. I cannot understand why Ismail continues to make all the blunders that he has made, even in the previous cabinet that he was in.

Please make sure that guidelines are properly discussed with the relevant government agencies before they are released to the public.

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STEPHEN NG is a citizen with an avid interest in following the country’s political developments since 2008.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.

Source : From https://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/550334

COVID-19 | The Health Ministry today reported 892 new Covid-19 cases and six deaths during the 24-hour period ending this evening. 

This brings the country’s Covid-19 death toll to 300.

Active cases = 11,446 ↑ (138 more than yesterday)

Patients in intensive care = 82 ↓ (4 less than yesterday)

Intubated patients = 27 ↓ (4 less than yesterday)

Deaths = 6

All six deaths were reported in Sabah and include one foreigner. The cumulative number of deaths in Sabah attributed to Covid-19 stands at 162, or 54 percent of the national death toll.

Sabah today reported the most number of new Covid-19 cases (45.7 percent) followed by Klang Valley regions (29.7 percent) and Negeri Sembilan (16.2 percent).

Of the 892 cases over the past 24 hours, only one did not involve a local transmission.

A breakdown of the new cases are as follows:

Sabah (397 cases)

– Existing clusters – 69

– New clusters (Liawan, Tatahan and GK Tawau) – 23

– Close contact screening – 215

– Other types of screening – 90

Selangor (235 cases)

– Existing clusters – 162

– Close contact screening – 33

– Other types of screening – 40

Negeri Sembilan (141 cases)

– Existing clusters – 129

– Close contact screening – 10

– Other types of screening – 2

Penang (27 cases)

– Existing clusters – 22

– Close contact screening – 2

– Screening of patients with symptoms – 1

– Other types of screening – 2

Kuala Lumpur (19 cases)

– Existing clusters – 19 cases

– Close contact screening – 2 cases

– Other types of screening – 6 cases

Perak (12 cases)

– Existing clusters – 9

– Close contact screening – 2

– Other types of screening – 1

Kedah (3 cases)

– Existing clusters – 2

– Close contact screening – 1

Johor (8 cases)

– Existing clusters – 6

– Close contact screening – 1

– Other types of screening – 1

Kelantan (9 cases)

– New cluster (Kube) – 9

Labuan (8 cases)

– Existing clusters – 6

– Close contact screening – 2

Sarawak (6 cases)

– Existing clusters – 3

– Other types of screening – 3

Putrajaya (3 cases)

– Existing clusters – 3

According to health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, the country’s maximum RT-PCR tests yesterday was 59,360. Yesterday, 20,350 tests were conducted.

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry has classified four new clusters today.

The Liawan cluster was identified in the Keningau district in Sabah where the index case reported symptoms on Nov 5. So far, 24 cases have been attributed to this cluster.

The Tatahan cluster involved the Kota Kinabalu district in Sabah. The index case reported symptoms on Nov 1. So far, 18 cases have been attributed to this cluster.

The GK Tawau cluster involved the Tawau district in Sabah, where the index case reported symptoms on Oct 6. Twelve cases have been attributed to this cluster.

The Kube cluster involved the Kota Bharu and Tanah Merah districts in Kelantan. The index case reported symptoms on Nov 7. So far, 10 cases have been attributed to this cluster.

Source : From https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/550316

KUALA LUMPUR, 9 November 2020 – Yayasan PETRONAS today officially handed over medical equipment and supplies worth RM2.5 million to the Sabah State Health Department for distribution across public hospitals and health clinics in helping medical front-liners mitigate COVID-19 in the state. 

Since last week, 10 units of powered air purifying respirators, two units of humidifiers with integrated flow generator, and five units of four-parameter vital sign monitors are being delivered to six public hospitals in Sabah. 

These hospitals include Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) and Sabah Women and Children’s Hospital in Kota Kinabalu, Duchess of Kent Hospital in Sandakan, Tawau Hospital, Keningau Hospital and Lahad Datu Hospital. 

The medical equipment and supplies will be used in the hospitals’ nursing care, emergency and trauma, intensive care and paediatric intensive care wards. Additionally, a total of 1,000 jumpsuits and 600,000 nitrile gloves will be distributed to the public hospitals and health clinics through the Sabah State Health Department. 

Head of PETRONAS Sabah and Labuan Rokiah Sulaiman said: “We recognise the urgency and need for more medical equipment and supplies at public hospitals and health clinics here in Sabah. We hope that our contribution can ensure the well-being of the front-liners whilst helping them cope with COVID-19 cases.”

Sabah Health Director Datuk Dr. Christina Rundi said: “We appreciate the timely contribution by Yayasan PETRONAS to better equip our hospitals and medical front-liners in managing COVID-19 cases. As we aim to flatten the curve again, we strongly urge the public to continue avoiding the 3Cs (crowded places, confined spaces and close conversation) and practising the 3Ws (wash your hands with soap often, wear masks and heed warnings).”

In September, Yayasan PETRONAS contributed a total of 1,504 bottles of hand sanitisers, 2,500 pieces of surgical face masks and 2,390 medical gowns to QEH. The Foundation also contributed two units of ventilators to the hospital in August. 

In April, a total of 14 intensive care unit beds were given to several hospitals in Sabah, including QEH, Sabah Women and Children Hospital in Likas, Duchess of Kent Hospital in Sandakan, Tawau Hospital, Lahad Datu Hospital, Keningau Hospital, and Labuan Hospital. 

As of November 2020, the initiatives and efforts undertaken by the PETRONAS Group to support the nation in mitigating the spread of COVID-19 stands at more than RM42 million which also includes a contribution from PETRONAS’ employees amounting to RM6.4 million.

These initiatives are in line with PETRONAS’ Sustainability Agenda and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 that focuses on ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all.

About Yayasan PETRONAS

Yayasan PETRONAS is the Corporate Social Responsibility arm of PETRONAS. Its mission is to enrich lives for a sustainable future. Yayasan PETRONAS aims to deliver sustainable impact, improving the quality of life and socio-economic outcomes for communities across the nation through its focus areas in Education, Community Well-being and Development and the Environment.

Source : From https://www.malaysiakini.com/announcement/550287

The Covid-19 pandemic has hit everybody the world over real hard and Malaysians are no exception. Hundreds of thousands of Malaysians have lost their jobs and most of those who are fortunate enough to be still employed suffer pay cuts. 

Some desperate ones have even resorted to ending their misery by committing suicide. In short, everyone has been thrown out of balance and they are still struggling to balance themselves on a thin and flimsy ledge.

Lots of disturbing messages, both in text and audio have been circulating via WhatsApp regarding people being fined RM1,000 for not scanning their presence while filling up at petrol kiosks, despite having their masks on. According to a news report, the police has defended their action by saying that even if a person is outside the enclosed section of the petrol station, the public still need to scan “MySejahtera” as the petrol station is deemed to be frequented by many people, and many people have touched the pump. 

I call this warped logic as scanning “MySejahtera” and recording one’s contact details (for contact tracing purpose) are meant for enclosed (limited) space and the main concern for this requirement is physical distancing. Most petrol stations are very spacious and at any one time, only four to 12 people are there to fill up their tanks as the number of people who can do so are limited by the number of pumps available. 

The rationale for physical distancing should be the density of people at any one time (number of people per square metre of space). If what the police maintain is correct, then all of us must scan the “MySejahtera” logo and have our temperature and contact details taken when we go to the beach or go to the nearby taman for our morning exercise.

Another disturbing rule says only two people from a family are allowed to be out at any one time, whether it is to the grocery or to the restaurant for a meal. One message being circulated cited a family of four went to a restaurant in two separate cars and they sat at different tables while at the restaurant. 

On their rounds, the police found out that the four were from the same house (same address) and all four were fined RM1,000 each. This two-person ruling is also flawed. If the family operates a mini-market of a grocery shop, does the rule mean that only two in the family can go out to man the shop? 

Again, slapping a fine just because of blind rule application is nothing less than exercising robotic behaviour. Again, the rationale here is physical distancing. A certain amount of flexibility should be exercised.

For better clarity and less confusion, the authorities should be more specific in defining the conditional MCO SOPs. Already, the variation between federal and state SOPs is sufficient to create some confusion and with the “as you like it” implementation approach, the whole manner of balancing our lives through this distressful period is exceedingly daunting.

The police are supposed to be “mesra rakyat” (people-friendly). We understand that your job is to uphold the laws of the country but then to do this, there are many more other ways, not just the harsh way. Have more compassion and make this tough period slightly more comfortable for everyone.

An ill-defined set of SOPs, different interpretation of SOPs by the Health Ministry (its Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre) and PDRM – a perfect formula for chaos and misery. We need a helping hand more than anything.

Source : From https://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/550229

OFFICES

– EPF, Klang

The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) will close its Klang branch offices and counters for one day today (Nov 10) to carry out disinfection and sanitation work.

The move was taken after one of the staff at the branch tested positive for Covid-19 and the staff is currently undergoing treatment.

Members who have an appointment with the EPF Klang scheduled for today are asked to enter the online appointment facility to reschedule their visit.

The branch will reopen tomorrow.

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BUSINESSES

– Ekkamai Thai Restaurant, Plaza Batai, Damansara Heights, KL

The management said in a notice dated Nov 9 that the restaurant has recorded one positive test for Covid-19.

They will be closed until further notice and all staff are being tested and under quarantine.

The restaurant has provided its MySejahtera details to the Health Ministry and those who have dined there in the past 1-2 weeks will be contacted accordingly. 

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EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

– Universiti Sultan Azlan Shah (USAS), Kuala Lumpur

The university will be closed for six days starting today for disinfection works due to a confirmed Covid-19 case involving someone on the campus.

The university will reopen on Nov 16.

Source : From https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/550212