[ad_1]
KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said he expects an increase in the number of Covid-19 cases in the country in the short term, as a record 691 new cases were reported on Tuesday (October 6). .
It was the second day in a row for a record number after 432 cases on Monday (October 5).
Four new deaths were reported Tuesday, including that of a one-year-old boy, the country’s first infant death.
But Tan Sri Muhyiddin said the country would not re-implement a movement control order (MCO) as it could seriously affect the economy, with 15 million Malaysians working. areas with 41 cases or more.
Malaysia currently has nine red zones, including seven in Sabah, one in Kedah and one in Klang, Selangor.
“We cannot be complacent. I expect the number of Covid-19 cases to increase in the short term. This is because the Health Ministry is conducting tests more aggressively, ”the prime minister said in a live broadcast on national television and social media.
“As of today, we are not thinking of implementing a National Movement Control Order (MCO) or a total shutdown. If we implement an OLS again, this could lead to the collapse of the country’s social and economic system ”.
Malaysia implemented a blockade effective March 18, closing its borders, businesses and schools, but has gradually reopened most sectors since May. Borders remain closed except for returning citizens and in exceptional cases.
Mr Muhyiddin wanted to reassure Malaysians that the country was “now better prepared than before in terms of experience and manpower. We know better the behavior of the virus and we have enough facilities and equipment. “
The Director General of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Noor Hisham Abdullah, said beds had been prepared for Covid-19 patients, with 2,820 in hospitals and 3,975 in quarantine centers. Currently, 36 percent and 29 percent of these are being used, respectively, it said yesterday.
There are 1,505 ventilators available, and 37% are used, even for non-Covid patients.
Tan Sri Noor Hisham said Malaysia has 60 laboratories across the country that perform real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction tests and is capable of performing 41,354 of these tests per day.
Prime Minister Muhyiddin also insisted that “there were no double standards” in the quarantine orders and that seven ministers and six deputy ministers were undergoing home quarantine.
Muhyiddin and Dr. Noor Hisham are currently in quarantine, following a ministerial meeting attended by the de facto Minister of Islamic Affairs, Zulkifli Mohamad al-Bakri, who tested positive for the virus.
Ninety of Datuk Seri Zulkifli’s close contacts have so far tested negative for the disease.
Anger among Malaysians has been on the rise over the new wave of Covid-19 which they feel was spurred by politics, with reports of ministers not self-quarantining after their return from Sabah to campaign in the state elections of the September 26. Some of these ministers did not appear to have been quarantined upon return.
Photos of swearing banners blaming politicians for the rising numbers have been floating around on social media.
Muhyiddin defended the decision to hold the Sabah state elections, but admitted that it contributed to the growing outbreak, as not everyone followed security measures during the campaign.
The government announced on Tuesday a travel ban from Sabah to other states, between October 12 and 25, as numbers in the state continued to rise. Sabah registered 219 cases.
Another state, Kedah, recorded more daily cases than Sabah on Tuesday due to a Covid-19 outbreak in a prison. Kedah reported 397 cases.
[ad_2]
