KUALA LUMPUR, April 21 — Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob today urged the public to continue adhering to the movement control order (MCO), despite a drop in Covid-19 cases nationwide.

He reminded Malaysians that as long as the MCO remains in place, all standard operating procedures (SOP) relating to the order will be enforced.

"When the Health director-general (Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah) announced yesterday that only 36 people were Covid-19 positive and there were no reported deaths, many began to feel that the MCO restrictions should be relaxed.

"As long as the MCO has not ended and new SOPs are introduced by the government, the current restrictions remain in force,” said Ismail Sabri during his daily security briefing on Covid-19.

Ismail Sabri, who is also the defence minister, said the public must not let their guard down despite the downward trend in Covid-19 cases.

He said some countries had eased restrictions after apparently bringing the Covid-19 situation under control, only to experience a spike in infections after that.

"We need to learn and take note of such experiences,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ismail Sabri said a total of 946 people were detained yesterday for breaching the MCO.

Of the total, he said 433 individuals were arrested in red zones.

"The police, together with the Armed Forces, have conducted 824 roadblocks nationwide, with 603,314 vehicles inspected.

"From there, a total of 53,380 spot checks were also conducted nationwide with 6,127 premises inspected by the authorities,” said Ismail Sabri.