THE thought of a coronavirus resurgence breaking out as shoppers crowd reopened malls are among the main reasons some individual states are holding off on relaxing movement restrictions next week.

State officials and public health experts said councils also needed more time to ensure that businesses from construction sites to factories come out with plans to make workers comply with social-distancing rules.

A spike in new Covid-19 infections over the weekend also has experts cautioning against easing up too quickly as the virus has proven to be resilient even while the country is under a lockdown.

At the same time, economists suggested that states reopen businesses in green zones first to restart the economy while giving everyone time to adjust to the new norms of behaviour.

Selangor executive councillor Siti Mariah Mahmud said at the end of the day, states have to perform a delicate balancing act between protecting lives and preserving livelihoods.

Selangor, for instance, needs more time to ensure everyone from local councils to businesses and residents are prepared to behave accordingly when movement restrictions are eased, she said.

“We don’t want a situation tomorrow where people who have been cooped up for weeks suddenly crowd the food trucks, stalls and restaurants to buy food for breaking fast,” Siti Mariah told The Malaysian Insight.

“Or when malls are opened, people crowd the stores and kiosks. Because malls also have to get ready to manage incidents like these,” said Siti Mariah, who is in charge of health, welfare, women’s empowerment and family.

Selangor is one of five states who have decided not to follow Putrajaya’s lead to open up almost all industries and businesses today and to maintain some MCO restrictions.

For example, Selangor won’t allow dine-ins while the public can only exercise in certain parks.

Siti Mariah added that local councils need more time to plan their enforcement operations so that businesses and customers comply with social-distancing rules.

Businesses must also be given time to present plans to local councils on how they will implement social distancing and hygiene regulations in their premises, she said.

“We must give everyone time to adjust and comply with these new regulations. Selangor is a big state and we still have several red zones,” she said, referring to districts with active Covid-19 cases.

“We will review our decision within a week based on how people are complying because we do not want to lose the achievement we’ve made over the past 40 days.”

Open green zones first

Sarawak, Kedah, Sabah, Pahang and Kelantan have also decided to either postpone or decline to relax the movement-control order announced on Friday.

Putrajaya’s decision, called the conditional MCO (CMCO) will allow almost all industries and businesses, except those which depend on crowds, to resume operations after a 51-day shutdown.

Selangor and Kedah said they are postponing the CMCO pending an assessment on whether they are ready to reopen.

Kedah exco Tan Kew Yew said the state’s decision was made after it received mixed responses and feedback from local stakeholders, such as businesses, district councils and residents, towards Putrajaya’s announcement.

“People were asking us whether they needed new permits, what kinds of SOP did they need and what would be allowed,” said Tan, who is in charge of industry, investments, local authorities and housing.

“So to us, we needed more time to coordinate everything and ensure that when we reopen it would be done smoothly.”

Economist Prof Yeah Kim Leng said for a start, states can reopen in districts certified as green zones and allow industries, which already practise social distancing, such as agriculture, to operate at full capacity.

“For all other businesses, give them the ability to operate at 50% capacity first and have them internalise the social distancing and good physical hygiene,” said Yeah of Sunway University.

Public health expert Azrul Mohd Khalib said the decentralised approach by state governments to grant their populations breathing space is both reasonable and smart.

“They must find their comfort levels based on their local epidemiology of the disease,” said Azrul, who heads the Galen Centre for Health and Social Policy.

‘When, not if’   

Kedah’s and Selangor’s cautious approach comes as new infections spiked to 105 on Saturday and 122 yesterday after a six-day stretch where it registered only double-digit growth.

The spike prompted epidemiologist Dr Lam Sai Kit to urge Putrajaya to review the CMCO for fear that relaxing them too much and too early could lead to a resurgence.

Siti Mariah said part of the state’s decision is so that it could prepare for “when, not if” clusters once movement restrictions are lifted.

“The virus is still with us and if there are sudden new clusters, we have to be effectively and quickly manage them so that they don’t turn into a new outbreak where we will be overwhelmed.”

Azrul said the spikes in new infection show how any easing of lockdowns is risky because of the virulence of the disease and this something everyone must prepare for.

“We are reminded of the remark by Aristotle which students of epidemiology are familiar with: ‘one swallow does not a summer make’.

“There will definitely be new cases in the future but we must have a plan for gradual transition out of the lockdown and the government must share that plan with the public. SOPs are not a plan.” – May 4, 2020.