KUALA LUMPUR, May 7 — Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri said he has been putting in seven-day workweeks since being placed in charge of security briefings for the movement control order.

The senior minister holding the defence portfolio said his days were now consumed with attending meetings and discussions related to Covid-19 and preparing for his daily briefings to the country.

“I work seven days a week. No off days,” he told the New Straits Times in an interview published today.

“In the morning until the afternoon, I attend daily ministerial meetings or the National Security Council's special meeting at the Prime Minister's Office before updating the people on Covid-19 during my daily press briefings, which are aired about 2pm.”

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Ismail said he must occasionally take his dinner at his office in the Defence Ministry due to his hours.

The Bera lawmaker added that he has also not been able to visit his constituency due to work commitments and the travel restrictions imposed under the movement control order.

“I am sad that I have been unable to see my granddaughter. It is ‘compulsory’ for me to see her twice a week but now I can't. Due to Covid-19, we cannot move about freely here and there,” he said.

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Ismail is one of two government spokesmen designated to provide daily briefings on matters related to Covid-19.

The other is Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.