KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 13 — Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin today asked the nation to pray that Malaysia will not be put under initial partial lockdown called movement control order (MCO) again like it was in March, amid the new third wave of Covid-19 cases.
He also justified the conditional MCO (CMCO) for Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya which begins at midnight as a pre-emptive measure, even as most of the districts in the state and federal territories are still not Covid-19 “red zones”.
“Firstly, I would like to say please pray no MCO, even though some may like it to happen or want to sit at home with their husbands or wives but this will bring a big effect in the economy and social sector… a big impact to our country too,” he told the media.
“If there is a second MCO we need a bigger sum of money...but currently in our strategy we are not even thinking of that (MCO). We are focused in preventing the third wave from getting worse rather than thinking of spending for a potential lockdown (MCO).
“If things get worse, we will find a way to help the people, we are prepared but let us go through this phase first,” he added, during a special virtual press conference with the media this evening.
Meanwhile, Muhyiddin also admitted the government’s shortcomings, especially the delay in imposing curfews in Sabah.
The third wave of Covid-19 had hit the state on September 20, but restrictions such as banning interstate travel from Sabah was only implemented on September 27.
“I admit there was a delay on our end but never mind, we have taken steps to contain the situation now. Whatever it is we’ve got all areas covered for now. The death toll from Covid-19 counts ... it is not on the rise…it is still under control,” he said.
Muhyiddin also justified Putrajaya’s decision to impose CMCO in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya by saying it had to be done before the situation got worse.
“We had to call for CMCO as a preemptive and proactive measure from our end. If we don’t take these measures, cases will increase.
“Based on our experiences this preemptive measure will give us leeway to stop cases from rising … if tomorrow some places turn to yellow zone or red zone we won't wait so long and will immediately impose CMCO.
“A loss is a loss to Malaysia. A single loss is a high loss to a country …. So we are taking preemptive measures,” he said.
