Everything About M’sia’s New ‘Lockdown’ Summarised for You

By
Shawn Ambrose
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If you scrolled through the news yesterday (11 Jan), you might have thought we time travelled back to March 2020.

Malaysia’s imposing a Movement Control Order for two weeks? Didn’t we already do this?

Well, many countries are going through a Groundhog Day of sorts, thanks to the persistence and resolve of the coronavirus.

Just when you think you’ve defeated the damn thing, it comes back with a vengeance.

And with the number of fresh infections in Malaysia, it’s no wonder the government are imposing stricter measures.

Everything About M’sia’s New ‘Lockdown’ Summarised for You

When Malaysians heard that Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin would be addressing the nation on Monday (11 Jan), they must have panicked.

After all, with infections rising, any special address would likely mean bad news.

And indeed it was.

In his address, PM Muhyiddin announced a nationwide travel ban and a 14-day lockdown in five states and three federal territories.

The new Movement Control Order (MCO) will begin from midnight on Wednesday (13 Jan) and last for two weeks till 26 Jan.

The limited lockdown will be imposed in Melaka, Johor, Penang, Selangor and Sabah, as well as in Kuala Lumpur, Labuan, and Putrajaya.

In these states and territories, social activities such as wedding receptions, conferences, religious gatherings, seminars, courses, and mass sports will not be permitted.

Interstate travel is banned nationwide, while travelling between districts is not allowed for the states under the new MCO.

In addition, another six states – Pahang, Perak, Negeri Sembilan, Kedah, Terengganu, and Kelantan – will be placed under a conditional MCO (CMCO).

Meanwhile, Perlis and Sarawak will be under the recovery MCO (RMCO).

So, why impose a lockdown all over again?

Concerning Third Wave

Malaysia first imposed the MCO in March 2020, to combat rising infections.

Thanks to the strict movement curbs, the number of infections gradually fell, and restrictions were eased so more businesses could reopen and the tourism industry could be revived.

But then cases started spiking in September,  after new clusters were detected in Sabah.

And these cases continued to rise after that, in what many refer to as Malaysia’s third wave. 

Image: Worldometers

Two Cabinet ministers were also hospitalised for Covid-19 within the last few days.

Health officials predicted that infections would grow to 8,000 a day if stricter measures were not imposed.

“Our health system can no longer afford to handle 2,000 daily Covid-19 cases. Our healthcare system is at a breaking point,” PM Muhyiddin said.

According to CNA, Malaysia’s bed capacity for Covid-19 patients is 23,000, but active cases have surpassed 28,000.

Malaysia reported 2,433 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday (10 Jan), bringing the total tally to 133,559.

Panic Buying

Yes, it’s those two words again.

Long queues were observed at hypermarkets and restaurants over the weekend, as Malaysians rushed to stock up on supplies ahead of the new lockdown.

The hottest items, as you probably guessed, were toilet paper and vegetables.

Two cabinet ministers urged residents not to panic buy, but as we’ve seen during the pandemic in myriad countries, that’s rather hard to do.

 

When this particular MCO ends, Malaysians will certainly be hoping it won’t be extended several times as it was last year.

This just serves as a reminder to Singaporeans that infections can spike at any time, and that the circuit breaker can return.

And I’m sure no one wants that.

Featured Image: NAUFAL ZAQUAN / Shutterstock.com

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Shawn Ambrose
Email: [email protected]