BINTULU: Bintulu MP Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing has again pleaded with the people in the district to strictly comply with the Covid-19 prevention standard operating procedures (SOPs).
He asked how many more Covid-19 cases must occur before residents start to comply with SOPs and stop gathering and prevent outbreaks.
“Treat this pandemic seriously and pay attention to your family’s health by strictly complying with the SOPs,” he said in a Facebook post today (Sept 3).
He said on Sept 2, 25 children under 18 years old tested positive, and as many as nine of them were under the age of six.
“It could also be that Bintulu’s recent sharp rise in the number of confirmed cases may be due to the relaxation of SOPs, especially when people do not need to report their entry and exit with negative test reports and with more dine-ins allowed now, which resulted in more potential close contacts.
“I want to remind everyone that all restaurants implement regulations to limit the number of hours customers can dine in. If diners violate this pandemic prevention measure and are issued a fine, do not blame the law enforcement personnel.
“We must strictly implement this rule in order to prevent more transmissions. Otherwise, restaurants may face another prolonged closure,” he said.
When the SOPs were relaxed, he said many people were starting to feel that the pandemic had disappeared.
“In the longhouses and housing areas, you could see residents gathering to hold barbecues.
“Now we find that outbreaks have begun to occur in the same housing areas and are more serious than ever. How much more warning must we give to tell people not to hold gatherings at all at this time?” he asked.
On another issue, Tiong said besides strictly monitoring compliance from people under home quarantine, medical personnel must also adequately prepare medical equipment and make regular visits to check on the patients.
“I acknowledge that a lot of people have made complaints and reports that many confirmed patients and their close contacts have not been notified by the Health Department or hospital for a long time and were not transferred when needed.
“As reported yesterday (Sept 2), we still have more than 300 confirmed patients who have not been taken for further treatment.
“If we add close contact to the list, more than 1,000 people are still waiting for arrangements to be made by the hospital and Health Department, because there is no available space at the quarantine centres and Covid-19 Quarantine and Low-Risk Treatment Centre (PKRC) in Bintulu.
“So, I do hope that people can realise how serious the pandemic has become in Bintulu,” said Tiong.
