KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 9 — DAP’s Kulai MP Teo Nie Ching today said that the government’s resources spent on the National Recovery Council (NRC) would go down the drain if its suggestions continued to be ignored.
Commenting on NRC chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s proposal on reopening Malaysia’s international borders, Teo claimed that Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein has downplayed the proposal by saying that the government needs to reconsider it with other related ministries and agencies including Health Ministry (MoH), Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (Motac), and the Immigration Department.
“So, there is a question mark as to whether the Cabinet and the NRC will work together and communicate in determining the future of the country's recovery or will they continue to fluctuate and issue media statements that contradict each other,” she said in a statement.
She also noted that Muhyiddin’s position as the chairman of NRC has the same status as other Cabinet members, which means that the latter was given responsibility and benefits like other ministers.
Teo also said that such contradictory statements between government agencies will only confuse the public and create uncertainties especially among those affected by the economic recession due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
She questioned whether Muhyiddin's appointment as the NRC chairman right after he resigned as the prime minister was merely a facade.
“Because, if his proposals are just a temporary mockery, either dissolve the NRC and fire Muhyiddin as chairman so that the government’s money allocated to the council can be saved,” she added.
Yesterday, NRC suggested for the country’s international borders be fully reopened without any mandatory quarantine by next month.
Its chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said however visitors should undergo Covid-19 tests prior to and right after arriving in the country, as recommended by the Ministry of Health.
A few hours later, Hishammuddin said the country’s borders would only be reopened after discussions with MoH, Motac as well as the Immigration Department.
He said the results of the discussion between the three parties would then be refined by the quartet meeting before being brought to the Cabinet or the Special Committee to Address Covid-19 chaired by the prime minister.
However, he said the two ministries and the Immigration Department had been instructed to make preparations for the reopening of the country’s borders.
