Govt told to invest in reusable face mask industry, help poor
The Perikatan Nasional government has been called on to take heed of the burden felt by local income households struggling to cope with the high costs of purchasing surgical face masks, a necessary measure in light of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Klang MP Charles Santiago is calling on Putrajaya to emulate several neighbouring countries to invest in local industries producing reusable face masks to protect the people and reduce the costs of masks...
The Perikatan Nasional government has been called on to take heed of the burden felt by local income households struggling to cope with the high costs of purchasing surgical face masks, a necessary measure in light of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Klang MP Charles Santiago is calling on Putrajaya to emulate several neighbouring countries to invest in local industries producing reusable face masks to protect the people and reduce the costs of masks.
He said many households, especially those in the B40 group, were unable to keep up with purchasing face masks for their entire families.
Each single-use surgical mask can only be worn for a few hours and must be replaced regularly with a fresh piece.
“So people (Klang constituents) were saying they were paying something like RM200 to RM250 a month for a family of four.
“This works out to about 18 to 20 percent of RM1,200 which is the minimum wage in Malaysia...it occupies a high amount of money in relation to wage.
“So given the need to fight the Covid-19 virus, we need to be vigilant, creative... I’m proposing the government, in a very significant way, support the industry that is now developing reusable face mask,” the DAP lawmaker said in a video posted on his Twitter account.
He suggested the government develop the cottage industry, working with technical and vocational education training (TVET) schools and NGOs in the process.
He claimed similar concepts were being carried out in Vietnam, Thailand and Hong Kong.
Beginning Aug 1, the government has made it compulsory for the masks to be worn on board public transportation and crowded public spaces where adequate physical distancing is difficult to maintain.
In light of this, the ceiling price for face masks will be reduced to RM1.20 from RM1.50 per unit, and wholesale price reduced to RM1.15 from RM1.45 per unit, beginning Aug 15.
This is compared to the initial retail ceiling price of single-use masks of RM0.80 apiece prior to the onset of the pandemic.
Risks of infection with repeat use
Acknowledging the costs to be incurred with replacing face masks, Defence Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the public can opt to use self-stitched face masks as long as they meet the specifications recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Meanwhile, Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia (Abim) warned that unless help or free masks are given to the B40 group, enforcement action by authorities on mandatory mask usage would have little use.
“There is a high possibility that many underprivileged people would reuse disposable masks repeatedly, exposing them to the risk of infection,” Abim president Muhammad Faisal Abdul Aziz said in a separate statement.
It also called on the government to issue free masks to the poor and to students.
Abim recently distributed 2,000 masks to B40 groups in Klang since the mandatory face mask order was announced, and claimed to have distributed 6,345 to 1,269 families since the beginning of the movement control order.
Are you sure you want to delete this comment?
This action cannot be undone.