By Adrian Lim
KUCHING, Feb 9: Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii has urged the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government to eliminate double-standard for allowing ministers to undergo shorter number of days for observation upon return from overseas to curb the transmission of Covid-19 in Malaysia.
He called on the federal government to instead make decisions based on science and data to curb the transmission of Covid-19 in the country.
Dr Yii who is also a member of Democratic Action Party (DAP) Sarawak questioned the federal government’s decision to reduce the number of observation periods to three days for ministers upon return from overseas trip whereas the coronavirus has an incubation period and symptoms tend to appear within five to eight days after infection.
He also called on the federal government not to make decisions based on political considerations and endangered the public’s life by shortening the duration of observation for ministers.
“The PN Government must stop making decisions on Covid-19 precautions and standard operating procedures (SOPs) based on their political whims and fancy, but every decision especially to curb a dangerous infectious disease must be based on proper science and data.
“This is especially when the government gazetted the law to allow Ministers returning from official duties overseas be exempted from Section 15 the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 (Act 342) from February 9, (today) until August 1 which spans the entirety of the state of emergency.
“On what basis was this decision made? What is the justification science and date behind this reasoning?
“This decision not only shows double standards when it comes to Covid-19 enforcements, but more importantly it potentially puts the lives of the public at danger, especially when the nature of the job requires ministers to meet many people and even have public events,” he said in a statement.
Dr Yii emphasised that the decision to reduce the number of days for observation for ministers should be made through a Federal Cabinet decision although Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba signed the law.
Dr Yii noted the experiences of countries around the world showed that Covid-19 outcomes were worse when science and public health became subservient to politics.
He was perplexed as to why ministers were given exemptions while the PN government declared emergency and claimed that it required stronger laws to curb the transmission of Covid-19. — DayakDaily
