KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 7 — The Johor state election will go ahead despite the spike in Covid-19 cases nationwide, says the Ministry of Health (MoH).

Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the healthcare system was prepared for the Omicron wave, and coupled with the high percentages of booster doses administered, this would make the state election safe to proceed but in accordance with strict standard operating procedures (SOPs).

Speaking during a press conference today, Khairy said MoH sent several SOP recommendations to the National Security Council (NSC) for its perusal this morning.

“MoH’s standing is since Omicron is not as severe as the Delta variant, data shows this, the state elections can continue but with strict SOPs. We sent a draft of our recommendations and suggestions to MKN this morning,” he said.

Johor registered 1,582 cases today, making it one of the states with the highest number of infections after Selangor.

The Johor state election will be held following the dissolution of the state assembly on January 22 and the Election Commission (EC) is expected to announce the date of the election on Wednesday.

Many were concerned that there could be a repeat of the widespread infections similar to what happened after the Sabah state election, which precipitated the third wave of infections.

It caused states to be put under various movement control orders as well as lockdowns as cases started to soar and the death rate increased.

Khairy, however, said Malaysia’s high vaccination rate as well as the increasing number of adults taking the booster shots reduced the likelihood of infections.

He said the Omicron variant is not the dominant variant in the community like the more deadly Delta variant and if Malaysians were to follow the SOPs and practice good hygiene, they can avoid another wave of infections despite a mass event like an election.

“Nonetheless, we are still monitoring the situation, especially in Sabah, as well where cases are high. Reports from there suggest a lot of cases are asymptomatic.

“As for Johor, I am going down tomorrow to check out the preparedness of the healthcare facilities and their capacity,” he added.