Most states expected to move into Phase 4 Oct onwards: PM

KUALA LUMPUR – Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin today said that the government anticipates most states to move into Phase 4, or the final phase of the National Recovery Plan (NRP), by October at the earliest.

In his briefing on the NRP at the special sitting of the Dewan Rakyat today, the prime minister said the anticipation is based on continuous efforts to implement the recovery process and the immunisation programme currently running smoothly.

For that, he said, apart from monitoring the situation in each state and taking necessary intervention measures from time to time, the government would also continue carrying out risk assessments in terms of the states’ readiness to move to the next phase of the NRP.

“I would like to explain that the government had decided during the special meeting of the National Security Council that states already in Phase 2 will not return to Phase 1 and states that have moved into Phase 3 will not go back to Phase 2.

“This is because the NRP emphasises an exit strategy with no turning back,” he said.

The NRP, which was announced on June 15, underlines four transition phases, with every phase of transition to be assessed and considered for each state based on three key threshold indicators, namely average daily cases, bed occupancy at intensive care units, and percentage of fully vaccinated adults.

So far, eight states have moved into Phase 2, namely Perlis, Perak, Pahang, Kelantan, Terengganu, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, and Sarawak.

Muhyiddin said if there were an increase in the number of cases in those states, the government would tighten movement controls based on the localities involved without imposing comprehensive controls on the state or district as is currently done.

“We plan, but surely, Allah is the best of planners,” he said.

The prime minister said transitions from one phase to another would involve opening economic and social activities in stages, and would not follow any schedule, but would instead be based on the state’s achievement in reducing the pressure on health system capacities and increasing the people’s level of protection through vaccination. – Bernama, July 26, 2021