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With a cumulative total of 448,457 cases, and a daily increase of 3,978 cases, we are ranked No. 42 among nations in the world with the most number of Covid-19 cases.

Nepal, now ranked No. 44 with a cumulative total of 413,411 cases with a daily increase of 9,317 new Covid-19 cases, is set to overtake us, but we are set to overtake Morocco, Lebanon and UAE to be ranked No. 40 with the most Covid-19 cases in the world.

In East Asia, ASEAN and Pacific, we only lost to Indonesia, Philippines and Japan.

It is mortal shame for Malaysia when the Indonesian authorities cited Malaysia in the same breath as India as examples to avoid in the Covid-19 pandemic in their warning to Indonesian citizens to stay at home and to take precautions on Covid-19 in the forthcoming Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays.

Is there any basis for Indonesia to give such a warning citing Malaysia?

I can think of only one instance – the rate of national vaccination campaign in each country.

In Indonesia, 3.2% of the population have been fully vaccinated, while 5.0% of the population had been given one dose achieving a daily rate of 260,112 doses of vaccine administered while in Malaysia, only 2.1% of the population had been fully vaccinated while 3.3 % of the population had been given one dose, achieving a daily rate of 42,968 doses administered.

Putrajaya had initially aimed to vaccinate up to 75,000 people daily under the national Covid-19 immunisation programme, but it had fallen far short of this target.

Why?

This is further argument why Khairy Jamaluddin, the Minister in charge of vaccines, should accelerate the national vaccination campaign.

It is utterly ludicrous for the Senior Defence Minister, Ismail Sabri, when he tried to defend the indefensible about the flip-flop SOPs, claiming that the government needed to constantly adapt the SOPs to the latest developments of the Covid-19 situation in the country.

Ismail should have known of the saying “the proof is in the pudding”. When emergency was declared to combat the Covid-19 pandemic in Malaysia on January 12, 2021, the daily increase of new Covid-19 cases was 3,309 cases and four deaths. Some four months later on May 11, it recorded a daily increase of 3,973 new Covid-19 cases and 22 deaths.

On January 12, 2021, the cumulative total of Covid-19 cases for the past 12 months was 141, 533 cases. In the four months since the emergency, the cumulative total of Covid-19 more than tripled to 448,457 cases and the cumulative total of fatalities more than tripled from 559 deaths to 1,722 deaths.

It is clear that the Malaysian government has failed in “the proof is in the pudding” test.

What has the “need to constantly adapt the SOPs to the latest developments of the Covid-19 situation in the country” to do with the most unscientific decision to ban outdoor exercises and non-contact sports under MCO 3.0.

Even the infectious diseases expert Dr Adeeba Kamarulzaman, who was recently inducted into the World Health Organisation’s Science Council, reacted instantly and pointed out that the risk of contracting Covid-19 outdoors was about 18 times lower than indoors?

Or the most flawed decision to use the Hotspots Identification for Dynamic Engagement (Hide) system to close down shopping malls and supermarkets.

The HIDE system predicts potential new hotspots for the next seven days based on data collected by the MySejahtera mobile application but its ”blindspots” caused it to highlight the major shopping malls and supermarkets but not factories and construction sites – when historical data showed that shopping malls contributed to less than five percent of the Covid-19 clusters, as opposed to factories (48 percent) and construction (11.6 percent).

Ismail Sabri should be reminded that nothing could be more pathetic and reprehensible than to try to defend the indefensible when a lousy job had been done with unbelievable incompetence and ignorance.

Malaysians have been the victims of two catastrophes – one natural, the Covid-19 pandemic; and the other man-made, the mishandling of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The complacency displayed by the Finance Minister, Tengku Zafrul Aziz that the implementation of the third movement control order is not expected to have a significant impact on the country’s economic growth as almost all economic sectors are allowed to remain operational is most shocking.

It would be better for Zafrul to provide immediate assistance to families who have been living on the edge for over a year as without help under the MCO 3.0, the poor would fail to cope under the compounded effects of reduced income, school closures and psychological pressures.

Is Zafrul aware of a survey by DM Analytics Malaysia for Unicef and UNFPA that found about four in 10 urban poor families had dipped into their savings to survive, despite having already received government assistance like the Bantuan Prihatin Nasional (BPN).

When is the government giving aid of these urban poor under MCO 3.0?

(Media Statement by DAP MP for Iskandar Puteri Lim Kit Siang in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday, May 12, 2021)

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#kerajaangagal37 — Malaysia telah gagal mengawal pandemik Covid-19

Dengan jumlah kumulatif kes positif Covid-19 sebanyak 448,457 kes, dan peningkatan harian kes baharu Covid-19 sebanyak 3,978 kes, kita berada di kedudukan ke-42 antara negara dengan kes positif Covid-19 tertinggi di dunia.

Nepal, yang kini berada di kedudukan ke-44 dengan jumlah kumulatif kes positif Covid-19 sebanyak 413,411 kes dengan peningkatan harian kes Covid-19 sebanyak 9,317 kes, sedang memintas kita. Tetapi dalam masa yang sama, kita juga sedang memintas Maghribi, Lubnan dan Emiriah Arab Bersatu untuk berada di kedudukan ke-40 dengan kes positif Covid-19 tertinggi di dunia.

Di Asia Timur, ASEAN dan Asia Pasifik, kita hanya tewas kepada Indonesia, Filipina dan Jepun.

Amat memalukan untuk Malaysia apabila pihak berkuasa Indonesia menyamakan Malaysia dengan India sebagai contoh kegagalan menguruskan Covid-19, sambil memberi amaran kepada rakyatnya untuk kekal berada di rumah dan mengambil langkah-langkah pencegahan bagi mengelakkan diri daripada dijangkiti wabak tersebut menjelang sambutan Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

Apakah sebab untuk Indonesia membuat amaran seumpama itu dengan memetik nama Malaysia?

Saya cuma boleh terfikir satu sebab iaitu kadar pemberian suntikan vaksin di setiap negara.

Di Indonesia, 3.2% rakyatnya telah diberikan suntikan vaksin sepenuhnya, sementara 5.0% rakyatnya telah diberikan satu suntikan vaksin dengan kadar harian suntikan vaksin sebanyak 260,112 dos, sementara Malaysia, hanya 2.1% dari penduduknya telah diberikan suntikan vaksin sepenuhnya, sementara 3.3% penduduknya telah diberikan satu suntikan vaksin dengan kadar harian suntikan vaksin sebanyak 42,968 dos.

Putrajaya pada awalnya menyasarkan untuk memberikan suntikan vaksin kepada 75,000 orang sehari di bawah program imunisasi Covid-19 kebangsaaan, namun tersasar daripada sasaran itu.

Mengapa?

Ini sebabnya mengapa Khairy Jamaluddin yang merupakan menteri yang bertanggungjawab bagi menguruskan vaksin, perlu mempergiat dan mempercepatkan lagi kempen imunisasi Covid-19 kebangsaan.

Amat tidak munasabah untuk Menteri Kanan, Ismail Sabri, mempertahankan pengumuman SOP yang berubah dari masa ke semasa, dengan memberi alasan kononnya kerajaan perlu membuat penyesuaian berdasarkan keadaan semasa.

Apabila darurat diisytiharkan bagi melawan pandemik Covid-19 di Malaysia pada 12 Januari 2021, peningkatan harian kes baharu Covid-19 adalah sebanyak 3,309 kes dengan empat kematian. Kira-kira empat bulan kemudian pada 11 Mei, negara merekodkan peningkatan harian kes baharu Covid-19 sebanyak 3,973 kes dengan 22 kematian.

Pada 12 Januari 2021, jumlah kumulatif kes positif Covid-19 untuk 12 bulan sebelumnya adalah sebanyak 141,553. Dalam tempoh empat bulan sejak pengisytiharan darurat, jumlah kumulatif kes positif Covid-19 meningkat lebih tiga kali ganda kepada 448,457 kes dan jumlah kumulatif kematian meningkat dari 559 kepada 1,722 kematian.

Adalah jelas bahawa kerajaan Malaysia telah gagal untuk membendung wabak ini.

Apakah kaitan kenyataan “kerajaan perlu membuat penyesuaian berdasarkan keadaan semasa” dengan keputusan tidak saintifik untuk melarang aktiviti senaman di luar dan sukan tanpa sentuhan di bawah PKP 3.0.

Malah, pakar penyakit berjangkit, Dr Adeeba Kamarulzaman, yang baru-baru ini dilantik untuk menjadi anggota Majlis Sains Pertubuhan Kesihatan Sedunia (WHO), memberi reaksi pantas dan menunjukkan bahawa risiko dijangkiti Covid-19 di kawasan terbuka 18 kali ganda lebih rendah berbanding di tempat tertutup.

Atau keputusan yang paling cacat untuk menggunakan sistem Hotspot Identification for Dynamic Engagement (HIDE) untuk menutup pusat membeli-belah dan pasar raya. Sistem HIDE meramalkan potensi titik panas baru selama tujuh hari mendatang berdasarkan data yang dikumpulkan oleh aplikasi mudah alih MySejahtera tetapi “blindspots” menyebabkannya hanya pusat membeli-belah dan pasar raya utama diletakkan sebagai berisiko tetapi tidak kilang dan tapak pembinaan – apabila data menunjukkan bahawa pusat membeli-belah menyumbang kurang dari lima peratus kluster Covid-19, berbanding kilang (48 peratus) dan tapak pembinaan (11.6 peratus).

Ismail Sabri harus diingatkan bahawa tidak ada yang lebih menyedihkan dan keji daripada berusaha mempertahankan yang tidak dapat dipertahankan ketika kerja yang caca-marba telah dilakukan dengan ketidakcekapan dan kebodohan yang luar biasa.

Rakyat Malaysia telah menjadi mangsa dua bencana – satu yang semula jadi, wabak Covid-19; dan yang satu lagi buatan manusia, kegagalan mengawal pandemik Covid-19.

Menteri Kewangan, Tengku Zafrul Aziz berkata pelaksanaan perintah kawalan pergerakan ketiga tidak akan memberi kesan yang signifikan terhadap pertumbuhan ekonomi negara kerana hampir semua sektor ekonomi dibenarkan beroperasi.

Adalah lebih baik bagi Zafrul untuk memberikan bantuan segera kepada keluarga yang tinggal di pinggir bandar selama lebih dari setahun tanpa bantuan di bawah PKP 3.0, orang miskin akan gagal mengatasi kesan buruk akibat hilang pendapatan, penutupan sekolah dan tekanan psikologi.

Adakah Zafrul menyedari tinjauan oleh DM Analytics Malaysia untuk Unicef dan UNFPA yang mendapati kira-kira empat dari 10 keluarga miskin bandar telah menghabiskan simpanan mereka untuk terus hidup, walaupun telah mendapat bantuan kerajaan seperti Bantuan Prihatin Nasional (BPN).

Bilakah kerajaan akan memberikan bantuan kepada golongan miskin bandar di bawah PKP 3.0?

(Kenyataan media Ahli Parlimen DAP Iskandar Puteri Lim Kit Siang di Kuala Lumpur pada hari Rabu, 12 Mei 2021)