MCO 3.0 can be the final MCO for Malaysia if the PN Government admits its failures, restores Parliament, stops SOPs and policy U-turns, ends double standards in enforcement, lets competent professionals decide, and focuses on saving jobs, businesses, and economic livelihood

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin must listen to, engage, and work together with all Malaysians if he wants to ensure that the Movement Control Order (MCO) 3.0 can succeed in winning against the 3rd wave of COVID-19 infections. MCO 3.0 can be the final MCO for Malaysia if the PN government admits its failures, restores Parliament, stops COVID-19 SOPs and policy U-turns, ends double-standards in enforcement, allows competent professionals to decide, and focuses on saving jobs, businesses, and economic livelihood.

The PN government has shot itself in the foot with Muhyiddin promising in March that there will be no national MCO by relying on science and data. Yet in less than two months later, he imposed a nationwide MCO, also based on science and data. How then can the people trust Muhyiddin to do his job competently?

The PN government’s “open, close, and then open” SOP U-turn orders in less than 24 hours for kindergartens and daycare centres have led to a profusion of confusion and trust deficit amongst the public. No wonder the Sabah government has again disregarded the PN government for the second time by refusing to impose MCO in the state. Yesterday, the Sabah government openly defied the PN Federal government by publicly allowing 3 shopping centres that were listed by HIDE to close for 3 days, to continue to open and operate for business.

The double standards in enforcement where VIPs and Ministers are let off scot-free or penalised leniently as compared to punishment for the ordinary rakyat, has exacerbated this public trust deficit. The latest case involves Minister of International Trade & Industry Azmin Ali who did not comply with the SOP requirement of a 14-day quarantine on his return from Middle East. Such double standards must end to regain public trust.

Invite Opposition Leaders To Sit In The National Security Council

Public confidence must be restored because the battle against COVID-19 can only be won by working together with the people. To restore the people’s trust, Parliament must be restored and reopen, and opposition leaders invited to sit in the National Security Council to form a united front against COVID-19.

Muhyiddin is expected to announce financial measures to assist Malaysians adversely affected by MCO 3.0. To save and pull the economy out of our current recession, the government’s financial focus should shift from controlling our debt levels and fiscal deficit, to borrowing more money to save jobs, businesses, and economic livelihood. Will Muhyiddin finally deliver on his promises to extend the bank loan moratorium automatically (except for Top 20) and increase monthly welfare payments to RM1,000, including the unemployed?

Lim Guan Eng
DAP Secretary-General