THE HYPOCRITES COME OUT! AZMIN CARTEL’S SANTHARA PRAISES MUHYIDDIN’S ‘SPEEDY DECISION-MAKING’ – EVEN AS SABAH THE 5TH STATE TO REBUFF COUP PM & PUT PUBLIC SAFETY AHEAD OF CRONIES – WHILE COVID-19 NEW CASES JUMP IN KUALA SELANGOR AFTER TRADERS VISIT KL WHOLESALE MART
Deputy Federal Territories Minister Edmund Santhara said Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s leadership style allows him to manage the country well particularly in handling the Covid-19 pandemic.
In comparison with Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Santhara said the former premier takes a diagnostic approach in making decisions while Muhyiddin is more open to advise and thinks outside the box.
“Mahathir is a great leader with many years of experience. We know that both he and (former deputy prime minister) Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail are doctors. Doctors think differently. Their thinking is structured, they will go step by step,” he said.
“A diagnostic approach is good but when it comes to dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic, it is all about speed. If it is just structured, then it takes time,” he told Malaysiakini and KiniTV in an interview on Thursday.
“Muhyiddin is willing to listen to advice, particularly from experts in public health,” said Santhara, adding that the prime minister has appointed Mercy Malaysia founder Dr Jelimah Mahmood as his special advisor on public health.
“Muhyiddin has many advisors, so this would lead to many good decisions.”
Santhara, however, said it would be unfair to say Mahathir could not have made good decisions regarding the pandemic as the Bersatu chairperson is no longer the premier.
“I am pleasantly surprised with the level of performance displayed by the (current) prime minister, his abilities and leadership qualities.
“You could see how he is managing it (Covid-19 pandemic) and this is the most difficult time for the nation,” said Santhara, who is also Segamat MP.
Santhara said Muhyiddin has no time to even take a holiday after he assumed office on March 1.
“I respect the prime minister as he said clearly on the accusation (of Perikatan Nasional being a backdoor government) that even this might not be the best people selected in terms of cabinet ministers but this government listens to the people and understands their problems,” he said.
“He was brilliant in putting up the senior minister cluster system which has increased the efficiency of public delivery,” he said.
“So, with a little bit of patience from the general public, I think they should allow this government to do its best,” he said, adding that the people should form their opinions on the PN administration later.
Muhyiddin was criticised for planning the political coup to oust the Pakatan Harapan administration.
After getting support from PKR defectors, BN, PAS, GPS and other minor parties, Muhyiddin was sworn in as the eighth prime minister on March 1.
His administration was labelled as a backdoor government by the Opposition and some civil society groups.
Asked if the people should disregard criticism that PN is a backdoor government, Santhara said: “I won’t say the people should disregard it.
“That’s their opinion and they have a right to think (on the matter),” he said.
“If Harapan had 20 months (to rule the country), I hope they should allow this government at least 20 weeks to sort things out, and we are working for the people,” added Santhara.
“The premier announced that all ministers and deputy ministers would donate two months of their salaries to the Covid-19 fund,” he said.
“Why are the Harapan ministers and deputy ministers not pledging to donate wages for the cause?
“If you are not able to pledge two months salary, like what we had done, then please allow us to work,” he said.
“This is not about politics. Let’s not talk about politics right now, we will talk about politics when we go to the Dewan Rakyat (on May 18),” he said.
“Right now, the core business of the government and the Opposition should be only about the people,” stressed Santhara.
The government imposed a movement control order (MCO) to contain the spread of Covid-19 on March 18. The order has been extended thrice to May 12.
Muhyiddin has announced a conditional MCO, which begins tomorrow, to save the economy which has been hit hard by the pandemic.
Sabah is fifth state to have reservation over Putrajaya’s reopening of economy
Sabah is the fifth state to have expressed reservation at Putrajaya’s decision to reopen the economy on Monday as part of the relaxation of rules before the movement control order (MCO) officially expires on May 12.
Sabah Chief Minister Shafie Apdal in a statement, said his state won’t reopen the economy on Monday and will observe the status quo implementation until the end of the MCO.
“This position is to ensure the continued containment of the Covid-19 pandemic and that the people are not exposed to Covid-19,” he said in a statement today.
He urged people to observe the partial lockdown until its end.
Sabah is one of two states to fully snub the reopening of the economy before the MCO expires.
Sarawak yesterday also announced that it will maintain the status quo until May 12.
Meanwhile, Kedah has deferred the reopening of the economy, referred to as the “conditional MCO”, until its state security working committee meets on Tuesday.
“The safety and welfare of the people will not be compromised. For the time being, continue to stay at home and practise social distancing,” Kedah Menteri Besar Mukhriz Mahathir had said.
Meanwhile, Negeri Sembilan and Selangor will reopen some parts of the economy but will maintain other restrictions, such as recreational activities.
On Friday, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced the reopening of the country’s economy after more than a month in partial lockdown.
The MCO began on March 18.
The relaxation will also see people being allowed to conduct recreational activities and eateries may accept dine-in customers but with social distancing measures.
Some businesses have also decided to delay opening their doors to customers despite Putrajaya’s announcement.
Yesterday, fast-food chain McDonald’s said it won’t open its doors for dine-in customers yet but will still accept delivery and takeaway orders.
“We can’t welcome you back to dine-in yet as the safety of Malaysians is still our main priority.
“You can still enjoy your favourite McD meals through our convenient McDelivery, drive-thru and take-away, 8am to 10pm daily from May 4 onwards,” it said in a Facebook post.
As of yesterday, Malaysia recorded 6,176 Covid-19 cases with 103 deaths.
However, 4,326 people have recovered and 1,747 are still in treatment.
Jump in Kuala Selangor Covid-19 cases after traders visit KL wholesale market
The jump in Covid-19 cases in Kuala Selangor yesterday is linked to traders who visited the Kuala Lumpur wholesale market in Selayang, the Selangor Health Department said.
Thirteen new cases were confirmed in the district yesterday, 10 of which were concentrated in the Tanjung Karang locality.
The others were in Jeram and Api-Api locality. The Api-Api case was the first-ever in the locality since the start of the outbreak in January.
The Selangor Health Department said it conducted screenings among traders and wholesalers throughout the state after two traders were found to be Covid-19 positive in the Taman Megah and Jalan Othman markets in Petaling Jaya.
When contacted, Selangor health exco member Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud said the infections also involved family members of traders.
“The traders bought items from the wholesale market and then infected their family members,” she told Malaysiakini.
Health Director-General Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah confirmed the cases were linked to the wholesale market cluster, which yesterday recorded 36 new cases. Only one of those is Malaysian.
Earlier, he said contact tracing for the wholesale market cluster found cases involving out-of-state traders as far as Bahau, Negeri Sembilan.
27 cases in one construction site raise questions
The rise in cases among traders and wholesalers come amid the discovery of 27 new cases at the Pavilion Embassy construction site in Kuala Lumpur yesterday, raising questions of the nation’s preparedness to open up most sectors of the economy tomorrow.
Malaysia recorded 105 new cases yesterday, its first triple-digit daily increase since April 16.
“A 27 cases cluster during movement control order (MCO) is telling. We’ve been asking whether people are ready for conditional MCO. Perhaps the more apt question should be: ‘Have we, as a country, been adequately prepared for post-MCO?’” said infectious diseases physician Dr Christopher Lee on Twitter.
He said it also shows social distancing was not practised in such settings even under the MCO.
Lee, who is former Ministry of Health deputy director-general for research, now serves on the Selangor government’s task force against Covid-19.
Christopher Lee@chriskc_Lee
Covid-19: 27 new cases detected at construction site on Jln Ampang
Covid-19: 27 new cases detected at construction site on Jalan Ampang
TWENTY-seven new Covid-19 cases were detected at a construction site on Jalan Ampang in Kuala Lumpur, according to Federal Territories Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa.
He also said that federal advice for businesses to delay opening up if they are not ready is “unrealistic” as many businesses will open regardless because livelihoods have been affected.
“If we had given them more time to prepare (perhaps weeks ahead) they will likely be better prepared come May 4,” he said.
The Selangor government said it will not open up all at once tomorrow and is seeking a staggered approach to avoid a “crash landing”.
Negeri Sembilan today also said it will not open all sectors and will continue to bar sporting activities and dine-in at restaurants.
Sabah and Sarawak will not follow the federal decision while Kedah said its executive council will meet on Tuesday to discuss the matter.
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