Good morning, here's a quick rundown of what happened over the long Hari Raya weekend.

Key Highlights

• Mounting Covid-19 deaths
  
  
• Rowdy Raya night
  
  
• SOP violations
  
  

Mounting Covid-19 deaths

Hari Raya was preceded by the start of a morbid reality - More than 30 deaths a day was the new norm.

The country saw a new high of 39 in daily death on Hari Raya Eve, only to break the record again three days later with 44 deaths. Prior to that, the country had never seen 30 or more deaths in a day.

Malaysia also saw the highest number of Covid-19 deaths last week (May 10-16) with 219 fatalities. 150 people died in the week before (May 3-9).

Prior to that, the country has never seen more than 100 deaths in a week except for Feb 1-7 where 112 people died from Covid-19.

Sungai Buloh Hospital, a key facility in the Covid-19 battle, resorted to storing the dead in containers.

Malaysia also set 11 consecutive days of record-high for Covid-19 patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). It now stands at 520 people, almost double from the previous peak of the third wave.

With hospitals overwhelmed, more than ever, Malaysians need to be vigilant as they may not receive optimum treatment if they fall critically ill.

However, Health Minister Adham Baba said it has not yet come to a stage where doctors must choose between who lives or die due to a lack of equipment.

The government has repurposed ordinary wards into ICUs. Some of the makeshift ICUs are not located at hospitals, such as at Malaysia Agro Exposition Park Serdang (Maeps).

It’s not only ICUs and morgues that are overwhelmed. Beds for Category 3 patients are also at overcapacity. The original plan was for 60 beds of Category 3 patients at Maeps but there are now more than 700 there.

Category 1 and 2 patients suffer milder symptoms, Category 3 have some form of pneumonia, Category 4 need oxygen supply while Category 5 patients need a ventilator.

HIGHLIGHTS

	After porn scandal, PAS claims Roslan's Twitter hacked His account 'liked' numerous pornographic tweets.
	People 'trying luck' for vaccine add to overcrowding Crowding also caused by people arriving too early.
	Quarantine for returnees from India extended to 21 days A traveller cleared quarantine but tested positive.

Rowdy Raya night

Malaysians generally stayed put during Hari Raya due to an inter-district travel ban but some ended up having run-ins with their local police.

A group of youths in Parit Raja, Johor lit flares and unfurled a “Kerajaan Gagal” (failed government) banner on Hari Raya night.

Police responded with a dragnet, arresting at least 20 youths.

Umno denied responsibility for the incident which police have described as a “riot” but has offered legal services to help the arrested youths.

Pakatan Harapan made a similar offer. 13 of them have since been freed.

Meanwhile, in Sentul, Kuala Lumpur, people threw fireworks at police after authorities tried to stop some 200 residents from setting them off.

Four people were arrested, including a 12-year-old and a 13-year-old.

HIGHLIGHTS

	AP horrified by Israeli attack on media building It says no evidence Hamas was there.
	Hisham slams OIC's lack of political will 'Bloodshed in Palestine must end'.
	PM receives call from Hamas leader PM expresses condolences.

SOP violations

Even though house visits were not allowed during Hari Raya, some politicians did it anyway. A myriad of justification followed after they were outed.

Two Terengganu exco members were fined. One said he visited homes to deliver satays which he personally cooked after receiving a plea from a weeping mother.

Another surrendered to police after a guest who visited his house outed themselves by posting on social media.

A PKR assemblyperson and a senior civil servant are also under investigation.

International Trade and Industry Minister Azmin Ali received police attention after posting pictures in the presence of his children and grandchildren. Cops are probing if three generations live in the same household.

Police also ended up issuing an RM2,000 fine against the wife of one of its personnel after she visited her on-duty husband at a roadblock.

Meanwhile, a burger chain complained it was nearly fined RM25,000 after authorities took issue with its staff eating on-premises. Dine-in is not allowed during the movement control order (MCO).

HIGHLIGHTS

	Some use Raya snaps to make a point against PN People have taken to social media to protest.
	Umno minister: Appearance with DAP MP not on Zahid's orders She says it was a chanced appearance.
	'Unchecked govt, suspended Parliament made Covid-19 worse' Opposition renews call to reconvene Parliament.

 

A daily glance at Covid-19

• 3,780 new cases yesterday (May 16). Cases have been above 3,000 for 13 consecutive days.
  
  
• 36 new deaths put the death toll beyond 1,900.
  
  
• Active cases declined from 42,135 to 41,889, helped by high recoveries. Whether active cases are tapering off or will continue to rise will only be known in the next few days due to lower testing during the Hari Raya period.
  
  
• For trends on daily cases, tests, hospital beds capacity, vaccination progress and more, follow our Covid-19 tracker.
  
  

What else is happening?

• A PAS leader received brickbats after he said donors to the Palestine relief effort shouldn't ask hard questions about whether their money reaches the intended recipients. This was amid the #Aid4Palestine donation drive PAS is organising.
  
  
• Sarawak was the first state to procure its own Covid-19 vaccines instead of going through the federal government, prompting other states to request similar treatment.
  
  
• The Selangor government is under the spotlight after it gave a one-month eviction notice against Orang Asli from the Mah Meri tribe to vacate land owned by the state government in Sepang. The state government is engaging them.
  
  
• Putrajaya continued to police the media's use of words to describe Palestinian combatants, this time looking into The Star's use of the word "militant".
  
  
• National archer Haziq Kamaruddin died from clogged blood vessels. He had received a second dose of the Pfizer-Biontech vaccine on May 4 but authorities said there was no evidence they were linked.
  
  
  

HIGHLIGHTS

	From childhood abuse to refugee advocacy Latest Malaysianskini follows Elise Arya Chen.
	M'sian student wins world public speaking contest He beat 35 other participants from 33 countries.
	Indonesia pauses distribution of AstraZeneca batch This followed the death of a 22-year-old man.

What are people saying?

	Medical personnel overworked, pulled in every direction By Dr Subramaniam Muniandy
	PM must prevent vaccine monopoly By Charles Santiago
	Govt should be more ‘militant’ in fighting Covid By Malaysiakini readers

CARTOON KINI