JOHOR BARU – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob today agreed with Johor’s request to be directly involved in the special committee to discuss the opening of the Malaysia-Singapore border.
Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Hasni Mohammad said the prime minister said so after listening to a state development briefing which lasted one and a half hours.
“Together, we will look at the state government’s efforts to expedite the opening of the border between Johor and Singapore.
“The prime minister has agreed that Johor should be directly involved as we are not only looking at reopening the border. This is something we are doing, but there are also other ongoing issues,” he told reporters after the prime minister’s meeting with the Johor Umno liaison committee here today.
Hasni said other issues that involved Johor include ongoing efforts to identify Johor residents still working in Singapore who have obtained vaccination and are also registered with MySejahtera, as well as commercial vehicle drivers who entered the republic but returned after their RTK-Ag tests were positive.
Hasni said that the briefing also saw the presentation of Johor’s proposed standard operating procedures (SOPs) for the border opening.
Among the SOPs presented are the acceptance of digital vaccination certificates from both countries, and the forms of Covid-19 screening upon entry and exit, whether within 48 or 72 hours before the journey, which need to be agreed by the two countries.
“It is just that cases are still rising in Singapore, which is why we need to obtain Singapore’s agreement to discuss the SOP we submitted,” he said. – Bernama, September 25, 2021
