GEORGE TOWN – Penang is moving official state events back online while scrapping a public dinner event this coming Saturday after recording a staggering rise in Covid-19 cases.
After recording some 2,000 cases in the past 48 hours, the state is not taking chances.
For instance, Youth and Sports Exco Soon Lip Chee has migrated back to using webinar app Zoom to conduct the closing ceremony of the National Business Web Design Competition tomorrow.
Similarly, Datuk Keramat assemblyman Jagdeep Singh Deo has also agreed to postpone the annual dinner of the State Housing Board to an unconfirmed date, as he is waiting for Covid-19 numbers to go down.
Originally, the dinner was supposed to be held on Saturday, February 12, but the DAP lawmaker felt it is better to play it safe.
The Housing, Local Government and Town and Rural Planning exco confirmed with The Vibes that the move was a temporary precaution in light of the astronomically rising cases nationwide.
“It is unfortunate, but we need to differentiate the event to check the spread. We hope that the people will cooperate with us to contain the outbreak,” he said briefly.
He urged the people to abide by the standard operating procedures and conduct self-testing to help the state contain the latest outbreak.
Yesterday saw the nation recording 17,134 new Covid-19 cases.
Although no deaths were recorded and the majority of those who tested positive are in home quarantine, Penang and its people are not taking chances.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, also believed to be under a second order of home quarantine after becoming a close contact for the second time in less than a month, issued a statement that Penang is ready to battle the Omicron surge.
He said that the state health authorities believe that Omicron is now in the community and will spread through it.
At the same time, Chow said that the majority of the cases are under Categories 1 and 2A.
Those admitted to the public quarantine centres have also increased, but the situation is under control, said Chow, who added that there are 21 active clusters, with the majority originating from the education sector.
To prepare for a possible increase of cases, Chow said that Penang through its National Security Council has allowed for the establishment of private quarantine centres at selected hotels for those unable to safely stay isolated at home.
George Town will also monitor data through MySejahtera, and has activated the Covid-19 assessment centre hotline at 04-3827143/04-3827142.
The state will provide more measures if a need arises, he said. – The Vibes, February 10, 2022.
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