Left in the dark over MCO announcement
PETALING JAYA: The government’s decision to impose the movement control order in six Selangor districts without giving clear details has left many scratching heads in bafflement.
“What does it mean?” said Center for Market Education CEO Carmelo Ferlito. “Can my company operate or not? Can I send my kids to school or not?
“We are left in deep darkness, as if lives and businesses could be switched on and off by remote control.”
Speaking to FMT, the economist asked Putrajaya about the SOPs for businesses and schools, saying it was not enough to just announce an MCO without giving details.
“Every college student knows the worst companion of business is uncertainty,” he said. “We have nothing here but uncertainty.”
Malaysian International Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MICCI) executive director Shaun Cheah said he had been pushing all along for business stakeholders to be given the relevant SOPs before any major announcement.
He said MICCI worked on coming up with a standard set of SOPs for the different MCO iterations so the business sector would be better prepared. But this had proven to be pointless.
“It’s totally ridiculous. Economic activities are allowed but no interstate or inter-district travel is allowed. How do workers go to work if they have to cross states? KL is not in MCO. So are those who live in Petaling Jaya prevented from going to KL?
“At least in MCO 2.0 (in January), the Klang Valley was declared a single district after much feedback.”
He said business would be disrupted by the travel ban.
In announcing the MCO yesterday, senior minister for security Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the workplace SOPs for the public and private sectors would be announced separately.
There were no details on school closures.
Former deputy international trade and industry minister Ong Kian Ming has also criticised the announcement, saying there was no information regarding sectors and industries that would be allowed to remain open.
Ferlito questioned the government’s political will to end the pandemic, saying Malaysia had not made any progress in defeating the virus in the past 15 months.
He said that “absurd and useless” lockdowns were pushing many into poverty, while billions of ringgit had been wasted as the government was forced to spend on subsidies and other aid measures.
He also said the government’s communication strategy was poor.
“The lack of proper communication has been constant during the pandemic management,” he said.
“After one year of hiccup measures like this one, without a proper strategy, businessmen may be tempted to just close down rather than make the effort to survive.
“All efforts are being constantly undermined by clueless interventions.”- FMT
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