MIRI – Certain ministers, assistant ministers, and politicians from the ruling state government coalition Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) are saying Sarawak has almost achieved herd immunity against Covid-19, as the vaccination effort nears completion.
Several are even saying that the state can enter Phase 4 of the National Recovery Plan by October.
A certain politician in Miri even said that Miri is already safe enough for Covid-19 prevention standard operating procedures to be relaxed!
I know these politicians are trying to portray a good image. Perhaps they are trying to be positive, to reassure the people of Sarawak during this difficult Covid-19 crisis.
Nonetheless, they cannot say things or make announcements that do not reflect the true situation on the ground, seeing that the Covid-19 pandemic is actually going from bad to worse in Sarawak.
In Miri, the Delta variant is spreading fast. In Kuching, it has already overwhelmed the population.
These facts cannot be diluted by political rhetoric.
The reality is that Sarawak is not seeing improvement in the coronavirus crisis despite the great effort put in to vaccinate the population.
The state authorities and Health Department deserve praise for their hard work in the vaccination drive.
However, the reality is that the Delta variant’s spread is overwhelming even the vaccination drive.
Yesterday evening, a double measure of police permit plus compulsory swab tests was imposed with immediate effect for anyone wishing to travel out of southern Sarawak following sharp rises in Delta variant cases statewide.
The State Disaster Management Committee announced that anyone in the districts of Kuching, Lundu, Bau, Tebedu, Serian, Simunjan, Samarahan, and Asajaya wanting to travel out must get police permits and secure negative swab results three days from the travel date.
The committee secretariat said the curbs are necessary to stamp out the spread of Covid-19, which is seeing a sharp increase in Delta variant infections. Delta cases have been detected surging in all major urban centres throughout Sarawak.
Dr David Perera, the head of Universiti Malaysia Sarawak’s Public Health and Community Medicine Institute, said yesterday that Delta is spreading swiftly, especially in state capital Kuching, Serian, Samarahan, Bintulu, Miri, and Sibu.
Dr Perera, who had tabled his latest report to the State Disaster Management Committee, added that in Kuching, Delta was detected in 99% of positive Covid-19 cases tested by Unimas; 93% in Samarahan, 95% in Serian, 84% in Bintulu, 65% in Miri, and 60% in Sibu.
“The overall average rate of detection of Delta throughout Sarawak is 82% for the whole state,” he said.
Yesterday, Sarawak saw 2,427 new infections, with Kuching having 1,155 cases, Serian 434, Sibu 147, and other districts below 100 cases each.
The death toll in Sarawak has reached 517 as of yesterday evening.
Those are the harsh realities. They reflect the fact that the Covid-19 crisis in Sarawak is still very serious.
Ministers, assistant ministers, and other politicians should not dilute these facts, or else they can mislead the community into a false sense of security. They must always check what they say to the public against factual details and statistics from health experts.
In Serian, a young girl recently died of Covid-19 at the tender age of just 8. Every day, about a thousand or two thousand new infections are being detected statewide.
Delta is raging in all major urban districts. Pushing Sarawak further into opening more and allowing more freedom to socialise will definitely be a deadly mistake.
These are the real facts that even politicians must acknowledge. – The Vibes, August 29, 2021
