Selangor will ensure ‘brought-in-dead’ cases remain low, says Dzul

 

Dzulkefly said the state’s Covid-19 numbers may be high but the state will ensure that the number of brought-in-dead (BID) cases remain low with mass testing.

KUALA LUMPUR: Former health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said today that Selangor’s Covid-19 numbers may be high but the state will ensure that the number of brought-in-dead (BID) cases remain low with mass testing.

Adding that the positivity rate in the state was around 10%  but had been brought down from 19% at one point, he said: “We are not ashamed our numbers are high. But we would be ashamed if the BIDs were high.”

He said the state government had been going all out to conduct mass testing to prevent BIDs.

The Kuala Selangor MP added that the federal government had failed to carry out diagnostic testing.

“If someone has done RTK- Ag testing, why do we need to repeat with a PCR test? The name of the game is speed. It is like fighting a war,” he said.

He said after one and a half years, the government now allowed saliva testing kits to be used to confirm infectivity.

“What took you so long to understand this?” he asked when debating on Covid-19, and urged other states to also do mass testing.

He said medical staff were overworked and overwhelmed after a record high of 17,000 cases a day.

“This is why we need reforms. How have the billions (in economic stimulus packages) been spent?” he asked.

He was replying to a question from the floor by Charles Santiago (PH-Klang) who asked if the rakyat could sue the government for deaths of their loved ones due to lack of beds, and medical equipment, experts, ambulances especially in Klang Valley.

“Is it time to summon the government for this?” Santiago asked.

Dzulkefly also touched on clusters which he said are only declared after a month.

Mohamad Sabu (PH- Kota Raja) spoke on the success of the drug Ivermectin in India which saw the country reducing its infection from 400,000 cases a day to 30,000 daily and if Malaysia would approve it.

Khalid Samad (PH-Shah Alam) was also disappointed with health minister Adham Baba’s briefing earlier in the day, stating it did not touch on the reasons for failures in handling the crisis.

“Where did we go wrong, there was no analysis on why the cases went up to 17,000 a day,” he said. He also asked about measures taken to ensure adequate beds in hospitals.

Johari Abduh (PH-Sungai Petani) said less than 10% in his constituency have received vaccinations. “Some registered in February and are 40 years old and above,” he said.

Adham is expected to reply to the questions later today. - FMT