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KUALA LUMPUR: “MCO, but not as MCO” – That is the general public’s perception of the Movement Control Order (MCO) that is being implemented across the country, except in Sarawak.
The problem arose with the implementation of MCO 2.0, which is said to be less successful in beating the Covid-19 transmission, with cases reaching four figures each day.
Many said it is because the MCO is not strictly enforced and this has caused concern that if the MCO is lifted, the spread of Covid-19 in the country will worsen.
For the president of the Malaysian Public Health Physicians Association, Datuk Dr. Zainal Ariffin Omar, the most important thing is to tighten the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) so that the spread of the pandemic does not get worse and the goal of reducing the number of cases. .
“People are angry now that even when the MCO is enforced, the SOP is not fully enforced. It’s like there is no OLS. In fact, even if there is no MCO, it is fine, but SOP is necessary, where compliance is vital to flatten the Covid-19 curve, ”he told Bernama.
On January 25, Health Director General Tan Sri Dr. Noor Hisham Abdullah said that the MCO, which is scheduled to end on February 4, will not be extended to avoid negative effects on the country’s economy.
However, the next day, Chief Minister (Security Group) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said that the decision to enforce the MCO more strictly or return to the Conditional MCO (CMCO) would be up to the National Security Council.
Dr. Zainal Ariffin said that if the MCO is terminated and continues with CMCO, social gatherings or any gathering that involves a large crowd, and also interstate travel should be prohibited.
“Any event that takes place indoors, such as kenduri, party, birthday celebration involving many people should not be allowed. Do like what is done in other countries, for example in Singapore, where a maximum of only five people is allowed in a social event.
“Apart from that, make the use of the mask mandatory, that is, when you leave the house, you should automatically use the mask, or action face. Physical distancing should also be a priority, if there are a lot of people gathered in shops or offices, take action ”, he said.
Meanwhile, Dr. Zainal Ariffin said the government needed to take stricter action against manufacturers, such as closing their factories, if there are reports that their workers have found positive results with Covid-19.
“For factories that registered a large number of cases, the government must be more severe … in the past, only when it involved thousands of new cases were they ordered to close, but now if a factory registers only one or two cases, there are to order it to close, ”he said.
He said the government should also inform people about its strategies to fight Covid-19, such as what US President Joe Biden did when publishing a 200-page strategy to fight Covid-19 on his first day in the position.
Dr. Zainal Ariffin said the government could also implement the target MCO by ‘shutting down’ states that had large numbers of cases, such as Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Johor.
He warned the public that even if OLS is removed and replaced with other strategies, the estimated number of positive cases would not decrease for at least 10 to 14 days after the Covid-19 incubation period.
Sharing the views of Dr. Zainal Ariffin is a virologist from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Associate Professor Dr. Yahya Mat Arip, who said that what the country needs is a specific MCO, rather than implementing it across the entire country.
“As we are aware of the impact of MCO on society, especially in terms of the economy, but at the same time, we need to deal with Covid-19 … it is necessary to balance these two.
“Authorities have identified several sectors that are ‘hotspots’ for Covid-19 cases, so it is possible that the MCO could target these sectors,” he said, adding that an ideal period would be 14 days.
He said that regardless of the MCO, CMCO or Recovery MCO implementation, it would be a futile effort to curb the spread of Covid-19 if public awareness is low.
He said the MCO implementation is a physical effort to prevent the Covid-19 virus from finding a new (human) “host.”
That is why during the MCO, the government limits the movement and close interaction of ‘hosts’ so that infection to new ‘hosts’ can be prevented, he added.
He said that public awareness of adherence to prescribed SOPs is very important.
“We need to watch New Zealand society in its compliance with the SOPs and their success. Most understand the importance of complying with the POE, but some do not, and they are the ones that cause problems, “he added.
Therefore, he said, vaccination is the way to face the problem of Covid-19 in society, where by making them immune to the disease, the country will have a better chance of curbing the spread of the virus. –Called
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