Yesterday (Wed 20 January 2021), Dr Musa Mohd Nordin a well-known paediatrician in Malaysia during an online forum on Jom Channel said Malaysia is in danger of having perpetual movement-control orders (MCOs) if the government doesn’t get its Covid-19 strategies right. Malaysia is not finding the hotspots and not doing enough mass testing with rapid tests.
Dr Musa believes that the key element in the blueprint of action to effectively handle this Covid-19 national emergency in Malaysia, must surely be a well executed Find, Test, Trace, Isolate and Support (FTTIS) system recommended by the WHO, which has fallen terribly short Malaysia.
And if the government cannot get the FTTIIS right, it will constantly be having MCOs, said the consultant doctor from KPJ Damansara Specialist Hospital.FTTIIS is the acronym for Find, Test, Trace, Isolate and Support System for combatting virus pandemics.Dr Musa said polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests — which the health ministry insists on — are too slow. “Although less accurate, rapid test kits (RTK) can provide results within an hour compared to the PCR tests. Once a person knows the result, they can be isolated immediately if they are in Stage 1 or 2.
He said the Malaysian government must also cap the price of antigens so that the cost for testing is more affordable. “The World Health Organization supplies them to us at US$5 each (S$6.63) but some places are charging RM280 (S$91.75) for tests,” said Dr Musa.He said the government should also cap the price of vaccines so that they are assessable to the public and can be obtained from private hospitals and clinics.“The faster people get vaccinated, the faster herd immunity can be achieved.”
Meanwhile, Singaporeans who own landed homes in Malaysia say they have not been to their empty landed properties for almost a year now. Many have never left the house empty for so long and are concerned about the condition of their properties as they worry about illegal squatters and thieves who may break in knowing the owners are in Singapore and will not be able to enter Malaysia during the MCO.