KUCHING, Feb 21: The involvement of medical professionals and enforcement agencies play a vital role in efforts to contain the spread of Covid-19.
According to Minister of Welfare, Community Well-being, Women, Family and Childhood Development Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah in a statement today, apart from that, the responsibility to combat and contain the spread of Covid -19 lies with everybody, including the public.
“The professionals, specifically the professionals from the medical team, their daily report, concerns, and advice help in fact which form the basis of the State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC)’s policies and decision-making.
“In combating and containing the spread of Covid-19, we also need the assistance from PDRM (Royal Malaysia Police), Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF), Malaysian Civil Defence Force (APM) and the People’s Volunteer Corps (Rela), to ensure that public movement is in compliance with the Control or Enhanced Movement Order in the state, at the border, on land, at sea, and also at airports,” she said.
Fatimah noted fighting Covid-19 also entails looking after the welfare of people involved which is entrusted to the Social Welfare Department (JKM) to help implement the decisions made by SDMC to provide the necessities for those who are under quarantine and lockdown, as well as for the frontliners.
She noted it is often that JKM is in need of assistance from the Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba), APM, and Rela including from non-governmental organisations (NGO) volunteers, youth organisations, Ketua Masyarakat, and Ketua Kaum.
“Then there is the Security Unit, National Security Council (MKN), and the Resident Officers heading the Divisional Disaster Management Committee (DDMC). In short, managing Covid-19 has to be conducted through an integrated and holistic approach, and SDMC is in the best position to coordinate and monitor, including managing the whole massive exercise,” she added.
Meanwhile, Fatimah opined the surge in the number of positive Covid-19 cases in Sibu is due to SDMC’s decision to lift the Movement Control Order (MCO).
She explained that normally the effect of lifting the MCO will only be seen after the 14-day incubation period.
“But here, the increase is seen immediately when the MCO has been lifted, meaning that the rise happened during MCO itself which is not in a total lockdown.
“The strategy now is to do a targeted lockdown. For example, in Sibu Jaya, where it is considered as a hotspot, with 70 per cent of positive Covid-19 cases originating from the area. As such, it is put under total lockdown,” she said. — DayakDaily
