No need to close Parliament, MOH has experience to handle COVID-19 - Khairy

PUTRAJAYA: There is no need to close the Parliament sitting despite reports of positive COVID-19 cases among the Parliament staff as the Ministry of Health (MOH) has the structure and experience to deal with the outbreak.

Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said among them is the frequency of COVID-19 screening tests apart from isolating those found infected with the virus.

"We also have the strategy and vaccination (programme). With all these strategies, we hope that when cases spread, we do not have to carry out drastic measures such as Movement Control Order, lockdown, closure of Parliament and so on.

"At our present stage, we already have the experience and measures such as closing Parliament and so on as the last resort...in carrying out frequent testing in Parliament (now), we would conduct two days of testing (in a week) and therefore there is no need to stop Parliament proceedings," he said in a media conference on the development of COVID-19 here today.

He was speaking to reporters on whether there is a need to suspend Parliament following 84 cases of positive COVID-19 detected during the current sitting since Oct 27.

Yesterday, Health director-general, Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said 25 COVID-19 cases were detected through random screening on Monday (Nov 29) which are most probably Delta variant.

The current sitting of Dewan Rakyat is from Oct 27 to Dec 16 while the Senate will start from Dec 8 to 23 2021.

-- BERNAMA