YOURSAY | ‘Why can’t we only lock down red zones and give more flexibility to other areas?’

PM: MCO to be extended for another two weeks

Quigonbond: The sledgehammer approach is going to kill off a lot of businesses and even more jobs.

In Singapore, they already had a business continuity guideline way before their lockdown to encourage people to split their work teams into two. One team works from the office with minimal exposure to the public, the other stays away and the two are not to socialise in close contact.

Despite the glaring omission, more discerning businesses such as banks and professional firms are already putting in place their split team protocols. In Malaysia, a lot of people know what to do. You just cannot rely on the government if you have a choice.

What the government needs to do is to stop using a one-size-fits-all approach. It has the database to know which areas are high risk and low risk. There are more responsible Malaysians than there are irresponsible ones.

Yes, be harsh on the irresponsible ones. Let the responsible ones, the careful majority, go back to work using split team protocols.

The rule of thumb is social distancing. There can be apps for this. Everyone carries a mobile phone, right? You download an app, it rings if there is close proximity. It's easy to create, download and install.

Social distancing is not just when you queue up at the ATM machine or buy food from roadside stall. It's when you are in the office, when you are walking pass your colleague on the same floor.

The government should have inculcated and educated the public right from the start of the movement control order (MCO) so that by now, after a few weeks of conditioning, when you release people back into the workforce, they are conditioned to behave.

The government, as it is, does not even have an idea yet how post-MCO will look like. Perhaps all they are concerned with is to delay parliamentary sitting because they are not confident of their majority.

Anak Malaysia: We have already been in partial lockdown for almost a month. Why can’t the government only lock down those red zones and give more flexibility to areas classified as green or orange zones?

At least, those “untainted” zones can open up for business though with strict hygiene and personal protection equipment (PPE) for staffs and sanitisers for walk-in customers.

GMan: I agree with Quigonbond. This two-week extension doesn't make sense as the health director-general has repeatedly said the curve is flattening. The number of new cases is going down and the recovery rate looks promising. Recovery rate is close to 40 percent now.

Many people do not have any income in the past four weeks. Another two more weeks? According to Rakyat Post, nearly half of the self-employed are now jobless because of Covid-19. Of course, many civil servants may be happy with the MCO extension. Their income and benefits are guaranteed and they get to stay home.

Anonymous 24658: This extension will kill even businesses which can succeed. Indeed, what is needed is to allow say minimal staff to offices to support those working from home.

Further, restaurants could be opened with maximum of 10 customers.

Weird Weirder: When the government extends the MCO, it must back up its action with a new stimulus package for companies.

It is not something the government can extend as and when they wish. Or else, the cure will be more painful for the nation than Covid-19 itself.

Anonymous 77024: Three weeks after April 28 is Hari Raya. How is Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and his ministers going to control the wrath of those they depend on as their support?

Give another RM600 or RM1,000 as compensation to those small businesses that make thousands during this festive season?

There are hundreds of thousands of families that are not part of the Inland Revenue Board’s (IRB) list or the Employees Provident Fund’s (EPF) list to receive government aid. They depend on this festive season to make sure that monies made during this time is enough to feed them for a while.

Outlets for food and clothing are among those who benefit a great deal during this time. With these outlets shut down, hundreds of thousands involved in these businesses are going to see a bleak future.

Dompet Saya: Our SMEs (small- and medium-sized enterprises) are a goner with this six-week shutdown. When we reopen, social distancing won’t be an issue as there won't be many places to go to.

Anonymous 2418081463042685: The government should allow businesses to open with maybe 50 percent of their staff or perhaps 30 percent.

Make it a condition that all staff must get their temperature taken and anyone showing signs of Covid-19 symptoms is sent straight to hospitals for tests.

Ayah Punya Kata: There is no provision in the Infectious Diseases Act 1988 to lock down the entire country. Only parts of the country, where infectious disease is raging, can be locked down.

We may be doing far more harm than good. Daily paid wage earners will not get any wages. When business premises are closed, the tenants will have no cash flow to pay either salaries or the rent.

There should have been comprehensive legislation to cover all this.

Cocomomo: Referring to the above, why don’t you look at how fast the disease is spreading around the world? At least 182 out of 190 plus countries in the world are being hit by this pandemic.

Countries like Singapore and Japan, which are better managed, have also realised they have failed to control the disease and have locked down.

If not for the lockdown, though disorganised, our death rates would be much higher now. The same would have been the case for India where the percentage of deaths is higher than Malaysia.

It’s a panicked shutdown but it seems to be working.

Face Reality Wake Up: It’s a good move to extend the MCO. The current measures are not even strict enough. There are way too many people on the streets.

Just imagine what will happen if restrictions are lifted and everyone freely continues to spread the virus: we might have many parents, sons, daughters, friends and other loved ones die just because of insufficient medical equipment.

Anonymous_1527925538: I agree with the extension as current daily new infected cases of more than a hundred is too high for comfort.

However, the government needs to give more assistance to people with daily income as they would be most affected by the extension.

The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. In the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.

These comments are compiled to reflect the views of Malaysiakini subscribers on matters of public interest. Malaysiakini does not intend to represent these views as fact.

Keep up with the latest information on the outbreak in the country with Malaysiakini's free Covid-19 tracker.

Malaysiakini is providing free access to the most important updates on the coronavirus pandemic. You can find them here.

Help keep independent media alive - subscribe to Malaysiakini.