A delivery man passes by an electronic screen with ads against COVID-19 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, June 1, 2021. (Photo by Chong Voon Chung/Xinhua)
The country saw an exponential rise of COVID-19 cases in recent months, culminating to daily record high of 9,020 new cases and 98 deaths.
"I doubt anyone is happy but we all are alarmed by the huge number of new cases. I hope that this will be the last time we have to face a lockdown," said a local resident.
KUALA LUMPUR, June 2 (Xinhua) -- Malaysia started a two-week total lockdown on Tuesday, with only essential services and some sectors allowed to operate on a limited basis as the country struggles against a surge in COVID-19 infections.
The government has mobilized some 70,000 members of the police force and the agencies under the Home Ministry to ensure compliance and has planned to set up some 800 roadblocks nationwide to enforce a ban on inter-state and inter-district travel.
The Malaysian government announced the lockdown as the country saw an exponential rise of COVID-19 cases in recent months, culminating to daily record high of 9,020 new cases and 98 deaths reported on Saturday.
The health authorities have also expressed concern on the spread of more infectious variants, with Health Ministry Director-General Noor Hisham Abdullah warning that the variants first identified in South Africa and Britain, respectively, have been found transmitting locally while the variant first found in India was also detected in Malaysia.
Photo taken on June 1, 2021 shows a scene of a street as Malaysia starts the implementation of total lockdown in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (Photo by Chong Voon Chung/Xinhua)
The government has said non-compliance of some people with the movement restrictions has contributed to the wave of infections.
Fears that an uncontrollable number of infections would lead to the collapse of the healthcare system also weighed on the decision to impose a lockdown.
The country's hospitals have seen some 80,000 active cases being treated and ever rising numbers of patients requiring intensive care and assisted breathing.
For members of the public like Adi Salleh, who runs a printing company which is not allowed to operate during the lockdown, said the measures are seen as a necessary evil, with life taking priority over the need to do business, which has already been slow since the outbreak last year.
Shops are temporarily closed as Malaysia starts the implementation of total lockdown in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, June 1, 2021. (Photo by Chong Voon Chung/Xinhua)
"I doubt anyone is happy but we all are alarmed by the huge number of new cases. I hope that this will be the last time we have to face a lockdown," he told Xinhua.
Harun Naquiddin, who manages an educational institute for disabled students, said the latest restrictions were a reminder for the public to comply with standard operating procedures (SOP) and other anti-COVID-19 guidelines.
"The public must understand that they have a role to play. There is only so much we can expect from the government. The public themselves must be disciplined. No travelling should mean no travelling," he said. "If we don't listen or follow the rules, this is the result. This situation will never end."
Malaysia has seen several versions of its Movement Control Order (MCO) since last year with varying degrees of restrictions. The government of Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has previously refrained from a total lockdown, citing the devastating effect on the economy.
On the eve of the total lockdown, Muhyiddin announced a new economic package worth some 40 billion ringgit (9.7 billion U.S. dollars) on Monday in an attempt to mitigate the impact of the latest lockdown to support businesses and to help the public who are severely impacted, especially those in the informal sectors and daily wage earners.
Vehicles pass by an electronic screen with ads against COVID-19 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, June 1, 2021. (Xinhua/Zhu Wei)
Part of the allocation will be used to increase the capacity of the healthcare system to cover the expenses related to increased operating and management costs in dealing with the health crisis.
Many hope that the lockdown could buy time for the country to accelerate the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines. As of May 31, Malaysia has administrated some 3 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, with just over 1 million having received two doses since the national immunization program started in February for a country with a total population of more than 30 million.
The government has pledged to speed up its vaccination effort to achieve a daily inoculation of 150,000, as more supplies are expected to arrive from June.
"It will be difficult for a while. There is some relief from the government, but what we want and hope for is the cases to come down, the vaccines to be given to all of us and for life to return to normal. It is difficult to think of the future when we are facing this crisis," said Adi Salleh, the businessman.■
