MASS gatherings should not be held for at least the next six months, said the Health Ministry.

“The practice of gathering is not encouraged for the next six months to one year,” Director-General Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah told a press conference in Putrajaya today.

“As for Ramadan bazaars, we should come up with creative and innovative ideas.

“We saw food-delivery services increasing by 70% during the first phase of the MCO (movement-control order).”

He backed the idea of e-bazaars, where food can be ordered online and delivered to homes during the fasting month.

Earlier today, Senior Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said there will be no Ramadan bazaars so long as the MCO is in force.

He said the National Security Council will revisit the matter if the restriction order is lifted before Ramadan, which is set to fall on April 23, as new procedures will be introduced to curb Covid-19 infections in the country.

The MCO, which came into effect on March 18, is now in its second phase until April 14.

On masks, Dr Noor Hisham said wearing one is a “minimal precautionary measure”, unless a person is a frontliner, in which case it is a must.

“Social distancing is more than adequate.”

He was asked about his stance on the public wearing masks after Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said authorities in the republic will no longer discourage people from donning them, following cases of asymptomatic patients infecting others.

Previously, Singapore encouraged only those who were unwell to wear masks. – April 3, 2020.