GEORGETOWN – The Health Ministry has been urged to increase Covid-19 testing at hostels and dormitories housing foreign workers, following the emergence of the Bayan cluster.
The cluster has recorded 40 active cases, and it is believed to have begun at the Bayan Lepas Industrial Zone.
The Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) expressed concerns over the plight of foreign workers there and said urgent action is needed to prevent an outbreak similar to Singapore’s dormitory cluster in June.
“Before the emergence of the Bayan cluster, Penang was a green state without Covid-19 for more than 100 consecutive days.
“After the case involving the foreign workers' hostel was identified, I feel the state needs to do something before it is too late,” said MTUC's Penang division secretary K Veeriah.
Last Monday, it was reported that a total of 199 workers at a factory in Bayan Lepas had to wear pink bracelets after coming into close contact with two new cases from the Bayan cluster.
It involved 87 Nepalese men and 112 Indonesian women living in workers' dormitories.
It is understood that their dormitories consist of 10 double-storey houses located in a residential area in Bayan Lepas.
“The radius of screening should be widened, to areas beyond the hostels as well,” Veeriah told The Vibes.
As of yesterday, the Bayan cluster had recorded 47 positive Covid-19 cases, and became the third active case after the Penang Remand Prison and the Seberang Perai Prison clusters in Jawi.
Penang has a total of 97,000 foreign workers registered in the state – The Vibes, October 31, 2020.
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