Minister assures hotel price capped, will ensure 'the best' for citizens

CORONAVIRUS | Putrajaya has maintained that it has a deal with 120 hotels to quarantine Malaysians returning from abroad at a RM150 room rate.

At a press conference today, Senior Minister (security cluster) Ismail Sabri Yaakob (above) said claims that there was no such deal were untrue.

Yesterday, FMT reported that there was no such deal, citing Malaysian Association of Hotels CEO Yap Lip Seng.

However, Yap later clarified that the report was inaccurate and that his association has been in contact with the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry since "day one" and were fully aware of the deal.

The deal involved hotels with a rating of three stars and above which must provide three meals a day. Putrajaya had clarified that the hotels were chosen by the Health Ministry.

Ismail said the confusion regarding room rates had led to anxiety among families which could not afford to pay for two weeks quarantine in a hotel.

He hoped that his clarification would put the matter to rest.

Better than other countries

Ismail said Malaysia has tried to provide the best accommodations possible for citizens returning from abroad.

"I'm sure Malaysians can tell the difference between our quarantine centres and those abroad.

"(In other countries) people sleep on the floor in crowded spaces and have trouble getting food.

"The government is doing its best for Malaysians that need to be quarantined. We should be grateful when we compare with other countries," he said.

He reiterated that Malaysians returning from abroad must be quarantined to prevent imported cases of Covid-19 infections.

Transit accommodations

On allegations that some non-hotel quarantine accommodations were not suitable, Ismail assured that the matter has been resolved.

For instance, Ismail said this happened in Johor yesterday because of a sudden surge of people returning from Singapore.

He said that these people were placed in a dorm as a transit point before being moved to the 14 hotels in the state.

He explained that unlike flights, which has a manifest, it was difficult to predict how many people will return from Singapore by land.

"Some return on their motorcycles," he said.

'Bigger' star

Meanwhile, Ismail said the participating quarantine hotels will be filled up one at a time.

"Some people say that (those under quarantine) in hotels with 'bigger stars' (than others) or are more comfortable.

"We have a list of registered hotels. We will fill them up one at a time... First come, first served," he said.

He said if there are any complaints about the accommodations, those under quarantine should talk to the management of the property instead of complaining on social media.

He also clarified that all hotels used as quarantine centres were recommended by the state authorities. - Mkini