The Star: Stricter MCO in Selangor crucial but don’t impose full lockdown-MEF

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KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) supports a stricter Movement Control Order (MCO) to curb new Covid-19 infections especially in Selangor but cautions against a full lockdown.

MEF President Datuk Dr Syed Hussain Syed Husman said on Tuesday the MEF was very concerned about the rising date of daily infections and the crucial need to flatten the curve.

However, he urged the authorities not to implement full lock down of the economy as such intervention would further stifle economic recovery.

“We are very concerned by the increasing rate of daily infections in Malaysia which exceeded 4,800 new cases on Tuesday with Selangor leading the tally with 1,743 new cases, ” he said.

Syed Hussain cautioned that while the impact of a blanket MCO would be devastating to business and the economy, it is understood that there is a dire need to curb the rising number of new daily Covid-19 infections.

“Any decisions towards this end must also take into consideration the interest of business and preservation of livelihoods, ” he said.

He said the current nationwide MCO is estimated to cost about RM300mil per day whereas during the MCO 1.0 total lockdown, Malaysia lost about RM 2.4bil per day.

“As responsible employers and citizens, we are doing our utmost to comply with the prescribed SOPs to curb the spread of Covid-19, ” he.

“Employers need to play a positive role to ensure that the health and safety of employees are safeguarded.

“MEF continually advises our members to take all the necessary precautions so that we would be able to see the end of this pandemic, ” he added.

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