Sabah orders plantations to screen all workers for Covid-19

 

This came after two new clusters involving infection among estate workers were detected. The clusters are the Baturong Cluster in Kunak and the Ladang Matamba Cluster in Lahad Datu. - NST/file pic.

KOTA KINABALU: The state government has instructed all plantations in Sabah to undertake Covid-19 screening for their workers.

This came after two new clusters involving infection among estate workers were detected. The clusters are the Baturong Cluster in Kunak and the Ladang Matamba Cluster in Lahad Datu.

Sabah Covid-19 spokesperson Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun said the Ladang Baturong cluster registered 44 infections today, taking the cumulative cases to 54, and Ladang Matamba cluster recorded four new infections, taking the cumulative cases to 20.

The 48 new cases from these two clusters were among 514 new Covid-19 infections recorded in the state today. Two deaths were also registered each in Putatan and Kota Kinabalu respectively.

"The spike in Covid-19 cases is due to the large-scale screening carried out by plantation management through Social Security Organisation (Socso) at Ladang Baturong and Ladang Matamba.

"For the Ladang Baturong Cluster, out of the 212 screenings conducted, 10 people were found positive for Covid-19. Another 44 cases were recorded from close contact screening.

"For the Ladang Matamba Cluster, 20 positive cases were detected. The estate management is actively carrying out investigation and contact tracing," said Masidi in a virtual press conference today.

Asked whether an action would be taken against plantation companies that did not comply with the workers screening requirement, he stressed a company has a social responsibility to ensure their workers' welfare is taken care of.

He said plantation companies must also look after their workers, especially when infection occurs within their workplace.

"We do not want to take punitive action but rather focus on solving the problem. If the workers are not registered with Socso, by right the management should bear the cost (of screening) for their workers.

"(The state government) has also instructed plantation companies to enable health officials to conduct their job whenever they come over to do a screening. A proper place for quarantine also needs to be in place should their workers need to be isolated," he said.

Meanwhile, the state government has allowed flour factories to operate 24 hours under the movement control order, with 50 per cent workers' capacity permitted in each shift rotation. - NST