KUALA LUMPUR – Many badly authorised policies and processes could have been avoided if such matters were discussed and debated in Parliament.
In a statement today, the Pakatan Harapan secretariat slammed the government for not reconvening Parliament as more effective regulation and policies are needed for the country to curb the spread of Covid-19.
“We refer to the press conference on March 17 by Industries Unite, a group representing 110 business associations with 3.3 million members.
“We strongly support many of the issues raised, especially regarding the issuance of compounds for SOP (standard operating procedure) violators, issues of unclear or confusing SOPs, as well as the negative impact of these actions on consumer sentiment and business operations.
“Without parliamentary accountability, we are concerned that existing problems will linger as mentioned by Datuk David Gurupatham, a representative of Industries Unite, as well as become the norm, where ‘everything is clear that everything is unclear’.”
The secretariat, represented by Fahmi Fadzil (PKR), Khalid Samad (Amanah), and Ong Kian Ming (DAP), urged Putrajaya to explain how policies and legislation changes have helped reduce Covid-19 cases in a targeted, effective manner while not harming the economy, especially for the B40 community.
“For example, what is the evidence that the government’s original RM1,000 compound for those who do not comply with SOPs under Act 342 (Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988) was not effective in reducing Covid-19 infections?
“What has led the government to believe that increasing the compound to a maximum of RM10,000 for individuals and RM50,000 for companies will be more effective in curbing Covid-19?
“We urge the government to demonstrate the steps – (both) scientifically and data-driven – taken when formulating SOPs.
“For example, today, we still do not know how many billions of MySejahtera check-ins are used to track and identify those who are likely Covid-19 patients, and how this data is used to identify potential locations of Covid-19 transmissions.
“For example, in November 2020 in Parliament, it was reported that only 4% of Covid-19 cases were tracked using the MySejahtera app. To date, we have yet to see evidence that data from the MySejahtera app was effectively utilised during the MCO (movement control order) and MCO 2.0 to curb the spread of the virus.”
The secretariat also urged the government to be humane during enforcement, saying that poor dish-washers should not be charged a RM10,000 compound just because they violate SOPs when not in a situation that can jeopardise the safety of others.
“Pakatan Harapan MPs are committed to working with the federal and even state governments to provide input and suggestions on how policies to curb the spread of Covid-19 can be better formulated and implemented.”
Recently, the government said appeals against the RM10,000 compound can be made at district health offices.
This came after strong public backlash, saying the punitive action was too harsh. – The Vibes, March 21, 2021
