Labuan orders Covid-19 red zone banners to be taken down

 

A Labuan health department worker taking down a red zone banner at a pedestrian walkway along Jalan Tun Mustapha. (Bernama pic)

LABUAN: Nearly 200 Covid-19 red zone banners put up in the Labuan town centre have been taken down, leaving local folks puzzled over the motive for the action by the local authority.

A check in the affected areas Labuan town found staff from the health department’s promotion unit busy taking down the warning notices placed along the main road, Jalan Tun Mustapha.

“Despite having the advertisement permit from the local authority of Labuan Corporation (LC) (as written on the banner), the Covid-19 red zone notification banners were ordered to be taken down today,” a health department promotion unit employee said.

He said similar banners were placed in all 27 villages and residential areas as the duty-free island had been declared a Covid-19 red zone since May 17 after having recorded more than 40 cases the past 14 days.

Labuan people’s representative council (MPP) chairman Dzulfaizal Manan said the Covid-19 red zone banners should not be taken down in view of the escalating number of new cases in the last three weeks.

“We hope the red zone banners in town, villages and residential areas remain as it is important for people to be alert on which areas are having infections,” he said.

When contacted, a senior official of Labuan Corporation said a directive was issued this morning for all the banners to be taken down immediately.

“We have given the permit for the banners to be put up but our higher authority wants a fresh application for approval,” he said.

Labuan, Malaysia’s international business and offshore financial centre, had been placed under an enhanced movement control order (EMCO) with four active clusters. - FMT