COVID-19: PM, 34 officers to resume duties in office tomorrow

All the 35 government officers, including Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who were ordered to undergo mandatory self-quarantine after they were found to be in close contact with an officer who tested positive for COVID-19, have been allowed to go to their respective offices to resume work tomorrow, said Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

He said all of them have completed their mandatory 14-day quarantine which started on May 21.

"Swabs were taken on all the post-cabinet members and all are negative. So tomorrow they can resume work in office," he said at daily media briefing here today.

On the officer who tested positive for COVID-19, Dr Noor Hisham said even the officer’s condition was reported to be improving and swab result showed negative.

On May 20, the Prime Minister and 34 officers were asked to undergo self-quarantine at home for 14 days after an officer, who attended the post-cabinet meeting tested positive for COVID-19.

Meanwhile, Dr Noor Hisham said the Sabah government’s initiative in allowing Malaysians from the Peninsula, Labuan, and Sarawak who tested negative for COVID-19 to return to Sabah without going through the 14-day quarantine upon arrival, can be applied.

He said if the COVID-19 screening can be carried out within three days, then the quarantine process can be exempted, if the result is negative.

“We (the Health Ministry) are also looking into applying it not only for those who want to return to Sabah and Sarawak but also for those who want to return to Malaysia," he said.

Dr Noor Hisham said the ministry was now looking whether to have Malaysians returning from abroad to undergo the mandatory quarantine at their quarantine centres or their home.

-- BERNAMA