School closure depends on advice of MOH - PM Muhyiddin

KUALA LUMPUR : The decision on the closure of schools nationwide will be made at the Special Meeting of the National Security Council on the Management of COVID-19, said Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

He said the decision will be made based on need and upon advice from the Ministry of Health (MOH).

“The Ministry of Education (MOE) is always monitoring the current situation of COVID-19 in schools nationwide.

“If there were cases involving those in schools, the MOE will work with the MOH in handling it,” he said in a special address to the nation over television and Facebook on the latest COVID-19 situation in the country, today.

Muhyiddin said the MOH would also inform the MOE on the necessary moves to be taken to ensure health and safety of all schoolchildren, teachers and school staff.

Realising that many parents were worried about their children’s attendance at school, he said the government had so far decided to only close the schools in the red zones, namely in Kota Kinabalu, Penampang, Putatan, Tawau, Lahad Datu, Kunak and Semporna in Sabah.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister said the government was also mulling over the suggestion to restrict the organising of mass gatherings, large-scale conferences or wedding receptions to reduce possible transmission of COVID-19.

“However, the government will seek the input from the MOH first before implementing it, including on the suggestion to have additional SOP (standard operating procedures) if necessary,” he said.

As for now, he said frontliners from law enforcement agencies would be redeployed to public places to ensure full compliance of the existing SOP.

“If anyone were found breaching the rules, compound and other punishments will be imposed on them regardless of their ranks and status. Sorry that ‘Abah’ has to use the cane now!” he added.

-- BERNAMA