PETALING JAYA: The conditional movement control order (MCO) will be extended for another four weeks until June 9 as public sentiments are also in favour of it, says Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
The Prime Minister said mass movements would not be allowed although major festivals – Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Kaamatan and Hari Gawai (the harvest festival in Sabah and Sarawak respectively) – fall within that period.
“On the advice of the Health Ministry, I am announcing that the conditional MCO, which will end on May 12, will be extended for another four weeks to June 9.
“This means all rules and standard operating procedures (SOP) during the conditional MCO will continue to be enforced until June 9. Any changes to the SOP or list of sectors which will be allowed to operate will be announced from time to time.“There is Hari Raya Aidilfitri, the Kaamatan Feast and Hari Gawai. I remind all of you that the ban on interstate movement stays.
“Many apologies and I beg your forgiveness, but for your safety and health, returning to your hometowns across state borders for Hari Raya purposes will not be allowed.
“When the situation improves, Malaysians can go back to their hometowns to visit their parents or relatives,” he said in a live broadcast on national television yesterday.However, he said visiting close neighbours and families in the same state would be allowed during the festivals, provided that there was a maximum of 20 people gathered at any one time.
He also stated that spouses living in separate states would be allowed to travel, as there were husbands and wives who could not meet during the conditional MCO due to work commitments.
“To those who need to cross states in Sabah and Sarawak, I urge the state governments to give them
the flexibility. Applications can be made through the Gerak Malaysia app or by applying to the nearest police station,” he said.
He also said the Islamic Development Department (Jakim) was refining its SOP for congregational prayers in mosques, including Hari Raya Aidilfitri prayers.
The SOP, he added, must first be finalised and presented to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong before it could be made public.
He said the SOP for other houses of worship such as churches and temples was also being drawn up.
On another issue, Muhyiddin said the Finance Ministry was extending the appeal period for Bantuan Prihatin Nasional (BPN) to May 31 and the public could go to the Inland Revenue Board counters from today to appeal.
He said he could not promise that all appeals would be approved, but those who qualified would get what was due.
As of today, 10.6 million people have qualified as BPN recipients involving RM11bil.
The Prime Minister also said although almost all districts in the country had been designated as green zones, the people should not be lulled into a false sense of security.“From 1,178 districts, sections, zones, sub-zones and precincts in the country, 1,112 or 94.4% have been categorised as green zones, 62 or 5.2% as yellow zones and only four or 0.34% as red zones.
“You may think you will not be infected because you are in a green zone but this virus is an unseen, silent enemy. It can strike you any time and anywhere,” he said.
The red zone category is for areas with more than 40 Covid-19 positive cases; orange zone (20-40 cases); yellow zone (one to 19 cases); and green zone (no case).
“Only four areas are red zones: Batu in Gombak, Selangor; Batu in Kuala Lumpur; Kampung Baru in Kuala Lumpur; and Pedas in Rembau, Negri Sembilan.
“To those living outside these areas, do not visit these places for the time being to avoid getting infected,” he said.
Muhyiddin also commended the country for ranking fourth out of 105 countries in terms of people’s satisfaction with the government’s efforts in dealing with the Covid-19 outbreak.
This achievement, he said, was reported in a study done by a research agency based in Singapore.
This will be the fourth time the government has extended the MCO. The order has been implemented in phases from March 18 to 31, April 1 to 14, April 15 to 28 and April 29 to May 12.
On May 4, the government imposed the conditional MCO, which allowed almost all economic sectors to reopen.
