GEORGE TOWN – The federal government should use the present space and goodwill it has gained from the declaration of a state of emergency rule to review the present strategies it has applied in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic, said Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow.
Chow said that the new approach can be applied to boost the effort to fight the pandemic.
Malaysia has been unable to shake off the infection rate in the past year, with more cases recorded under the third wave of infections, which came in the aftermath of the Sabah state election five months ago.
The country has recorded over 151,000 infections with 586 deaths.
“We should use the emergency rule to review the strategies and engagement that were previously used to fight the virus. We need to see how we can fine-tune them so we can eventually free the country from this threat,” said Chow.
He said this in a statement after attending a special National Security Council meeting on the emergency rule in Putrajaya earlier today.
Chow assured the people here that the executive powers of the chief minister are retained despite the emergency rule.
The only exception is that state assembly sittings will not proceed during the period of the decree until approval is accorded by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
The state of emergency runs until August this year.
“Even though the emergency status empowers the prime minister (Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin) to manage the pandemic more effectively, the people do not want to see any erosion of the parliamentary democratic rule, which has been the bedrock of the country,” said Chow. – The Vibes, January 16, 2021
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