Rakyat expected to follow Covid-19 SOP but not leaders

 

MP SPEAKS | I keep getting messages from the National Security Council advising me not to circulate fake news, not to create panic, to always wash my hands, and to wear face masks in public.

And then we have the Health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, who is so meticulous about everyone following the standard operating procedure (SOP).

The police, on the other hand, have come down hard on anyone who flouts the lockdown rules.

But on Friday, our new cases stood at 287 - the highest daily number of recorded Covid-19 positive cases in Malaysia since the pandemic began.

And that’s because the government, ministry folks, and police didn’t care to follow the SOP that they have been drumming into our heads, just because they were hell-bent on winning the Sabah election.

It was shocking that Noor Hisham didn’t insist on quarantining those who were returning from Sabah until it was too late and even then, they were quarantined for a mere three, not 14, days.

It’s also infuriating that no travel ban to Sabah was imposed despite the rapidly rising cases on the Borneo island.

Now we have widespread infections and the possibility of even more cases in the next few days.

And what do we hear from the Health DG, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin or the police?

Nothing; not even a whimper.

It’s absolutely disgusting that politicians have put greed for power and money over and beyond the lives of people.

Yes, it’s nothing new in Malaysia but unprecedented for even our top guys to be this ruthless and shameless during a pandemic.

A pandemic that has rendered businesses shut, left thousands jobless, and which has led to a downward-sliding economy.

Noor Hisham has even warned us of another possible lockdown on his Twitter account.

But it’s not a joke. Another movement control order (MCO) will cripple the economy, make even more Malaysians jobless, shut down more businesses, and drive many to the brink of suicide, as we have seen happening in other parts of the world.

So, no one should be allowed to go scot-free after creating this much fear and confusion. Not after prompting a slide back on progress.

Every politician, cabinet member, or senior civil servant who failed to do their job, who practised double-standards, and who nonchalantly dismissed the protocol must be punished.

Those returning from Sabah must undergo the usual 14-day quarantine.

We can’t afford another death; an alarming increase in the number of cases, or another lockdown.

And if we need to disregard the discomfort of top-notch politicians to achieve the above, so be it.

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CHARLES SANTIAGO is the DAP MP for Klang. - Mkini

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