KUALA LUMPUR, May 18 — Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob today said that authorities are revising the standard operating procedure (SOP) at quarantine centres in Sabah following lack of space in the facilities.
He said the SOP needed to be revised before 7,384 students return back to their hometown in Sabah.
Ismail Sabri said the lack of space in quarantine centres was the reason the Sabah government had agreed to allow certain students to complete their mandatory 14 day quarantine at home, instead of at the designated centres.
“Many parents have been asking why their children cannot return home yet. It’s because there is not enough space at quarantine centres for so many students. But we have come up with a solution with everyone’s agreement,” he said.
Ismail Sabri said that they agreed to allow the students to return home and self-quarantine because they were travelling from a green zone, which is their on-site campus, and are assumed to be free of Covid-19.
“Upon health screening and swab tests, and if they pass, they will be allowed to return home. Those found with symptoms will of course be treated at the hospitals. This is the agreement we have with the Sabah government,” he said.
Earlier he said that 7,384 students from Sabah and 2,207 students from Sarawak are currently waiting for their flights home. Yesterday, 1,646 students were sent home including 652 to Sarawak and 574 to Kota Kinabalu from Kuala Lumpur.
Since April 27, 49,019 students have been sent back from local universities to their hometowns.
In Sabah, there was a spike in Covid-19 cases last week following the return of students and Sabahans to the state and due to non-compliance to home quarantine.
Ismail Sabri said that there are currently 245 quarantine centres operational in the country with 16,240 people under quarantine.
