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Penang CM: More cautious approach necessary for reopening of Malaysia's borders

GEORGE TOWN: A more cautious approach with regards to the reopening of Malaysia's borders is more appropriate with the rising number of Covid-19 cases, Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said today.

Stressing that he was not against the reopening of the country's borders, Chow said Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin's recent statement on the matter was probably a more cautious approach than what was mentioned by National Recovery Council (NRC) chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

On Saturday, Khairy had said that early in the second quarter of this year would be a more realistic target for the reopening of Malaysia's borders.

Earlier this month, Muhyiddin had said that the NRC had proposed for the full reopening of the country's borders as early as March 1, without the need for mandatory quarantine.

"I have said that I welcomed the decision to open the country's borders. I am not against the reopening of the country's borders but I would say a more cautious approach is appropriate with the rising Covid-19 cases," said Chow.

He was met after the SpaceTech-Hub formation and memorandum of understanding (MoU) signing ceremony.

Chow said he could understand why Khairy is more cautious, given the rising number of Covid-19 cases.

"I have also said that the minister and the ministry will continue to monitor the situation, and the second quarter means the end of March or April. So, it is probably a more cautious approach than what Muhyiddin had said because this (Covid-19) situation is changing every day.

"Every day, there can be a new interpretation, analysis. So, I think it is best and the ministry has asked for two to three weeks to prepare the standard operating procedures (SOP) for reopening of the country's borders. This may be ready sometime beyond March 1," he added.

Meanwhile, asked if Penang would tighten the existing SOP due to the rising daily Covid-19 tally, he said the state-level Covid-19 management committee would meet next week to discuss the matter.

"The committee will be briefed on the current situation, including possible tightening of SOP. We will inform if there are any changes to the SOP," he said.

On whether the Delta or Omicron variants were prevalent in the state, Chow said both variants were recorded in the state.

"But that does not mean that our daily cases of over 1,000 or 2,000 are all Delta or Omicon variants. As of mid-February, Penang has recorded 544 Delta variant cases and 37 Omicron variant cases."

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