PUTRAJAYA – Non-Muslim houses of worship in areas designated under the movement control order (MCO) will now be allowed to operate.
The National Unity Ministry said the ruling applies for the period between February 12 and 18.
In a statement today, the ministry said the decision was made during the National Security Council Special Meeting On Covid-19 Management chaired by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
It said the government supported the decision, subject to strict standard operating procedures (SOPs), namely limiting the number of worshippers present at any one time to 30.
Sanitation must also be conducted for 30 minutes before and after the religious activities or prayers.
Also among the SOPs is mandatory usage of the MySejahtera app for contact tracing, though this is only a requirement for areas that have strong internet connectivity.
“Those without smartphones or above the age of 60 are also exempted from having to scan the MySejahtera QR code,’’ it said.
According to the statement, prayers for Buddhist temples, Tao temples, Wat and churches can run from 6am until 2pm.
For Hindu temples, the first session is from 6am to 10am and the second session is from 5pm to 9pm while Gurdwara commences at 6am until 9am, it said.
‘’These SOPs were approved by the National Security Council,’’ it said. – Bernama, February 13, 2021
