Step up enforcement to ensure sectors adhere to SOPs - MMA

Authorities need to increase monitoring and enforcement to ensure all sectors in the country fully adhere to standard operating procedures (SOPs) as advised by the government.

Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) President Dr N. Ganabaskaran said without regular checks from enforcement personnel, the SOPs would be taken lightly and the people having the impression that things were back to normal.

“MMA wishes to remind the Malaysian public that the COVID-19 pandemic has not been declared over. There are still active cases in the country and just about anyone can be at risk of infection if preventive measures are not taken.

“Therefore we must not let our guard down. It is a collective responsibility. Everyone has a role to play in the fight against COVID-19. MMA is confident, we will win if we all do our part,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Dr Ganabaskaran said the association has also observed that the level of compliance to the SOPs has dropped tremendously since the start of the Recovery Movement Control Order (RMCO) and there were great concerns as the number of COVID-19 new cases rising again to double digits as well as new clusters detected.

“Malaysia's economy is still hurting from the three months under MCO. Another MCO may be even more damaging. Some businesses may not even recover. Families can be overwhelmed by financial pressure from these losses and this can even lead to health issues.

"We cannot afford another MCO, therefore it is best that we all do our part as a nation and fully adhere to the simple precautions in the SOPs. It is for our own good,” he added.

-- BERNAMA