Health D-G’s Covid-19 ‘war cry’ to frontliners: Malaysia is counting on us to battle on and flatten the curve again

 

Health Director-General Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham speaks during the Covid-19 press conference at the Ministry of Health October 1, 2020. — Picture by Miera Zulyana

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 4 — Amid Malaysia recording its highest-ever number of daily new Covid-19 cases, Health Director-General Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah has called on frontliners to take up the battle against the virus in a bid to flatten the curve again.

Acknowledging the sacrifices made by frontliners over the past year in their battle to curb the spread of Covid-19, including chronic fatigue and a lack of sleep, Dr Noor Hisham spurred them on to once again help slow the spread of the highly infectious virus.

“To all our frontliners we have a huge battle ahead of us. Our country depends on us despite many sleepless nights and chronic fatigue, wipe your tears, chin up, eyes forward, let’s flatten the curve again,” he wrote on his official Twitter account late last night.

 

To all our frontliners we have a huge battle ahead of us. Our country depends on us despite many sleepless nights and chronic fatigue, wipe your tears, chin up, eyes forward, let’s flatten the curve again pic.twitter.com/nTF8O6VRay

— Noor Hisham Abdullah (@DGHisham) October 3, 2020

 

Yesterday, Malaysia recorded a historic high of 317 new Covid-19 cases in a day. 

This, in turn, resulted in the country’s cumulative tally of Covid-19 cases crossing the 12,000 mark, albeit with 10,216 of these cases already having recovered. 

This was after Malaysia recorded a new high of 287 cases the day before (October 2).

Previously, Malaysia managed to flatten the Covid-19 curve in the country, with some days recording new daily cases in the single digit, following a collective effort by the authorities to ensure compliance with a movement control order (MCO) — in place since March 18 and which has since gone through several phases — as well as widespread general compliance by the public to standard operating procedures and precautionary measures.

In recent weeks, however, multiple new Covid-19 clusters have emerged and there has been a spike in cases, with the number of new daily cases in the double or triple digits for much of last month.

On October 1, which was also when Malaysia recorded its highest daily number of cases since June with 260 new cases, Dr Noor Hisham said the statistics probably indicated the start of a new wave in Covid-19 cases.

He had, however, stressed that Malaysians could flatten the curve for Covid-19 again if they work together and comply with the necessary SOPs, stating: “Although we can see that the cases are increasing, if we come together, we can make the impossible, possible, and flatten the curve again. We have done that before, we are going to do it again.” - malaymail