THE government must consider all options before putting in place stricter standard operating procedures (SOP) to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic, said Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) president N. Subramaniam.

He said while the tourism and hotel industry is ready to accept tougher SOP, any blanket ban on it will make survival harder for the operators.

“The tourism and hotel industry is again helpless as various states are under another round of movement control order (MCO), and this time around, it came right in the middle of the holy month of Ramadan when hotels are busy preparing for the coming Hari Raya holidays.” he said today.

“The industry understands the need for restrictions to be in place but believes that there is room for improvement.

“Hotels are already badly impacted by the extended interstate travel ban and now even travel from one recovery movement control order (RMCO) area to another has been suspended.” 

He also said the ban on dine-ins has left hotels in a predicament with only days to reorganise what was planned for the entire month.

Hotels are left with not only excess supplies of perishables but also committed manpower for the period, he added.

“With the current situation that cuts off all revenue streams, the industry is willing to comply with stricter SOP such as lower capacity limit, served-buffet service, limiting two people per table, limiting dining time, increased screening and even mandatory testing for incoming hotel guests from different states,” he said.

“Tthe government needs to consider these options before imposing blanket bans, to allow the industry to at least survive on its own.” 

Last year, the hotel industry lost at least RM135 million in food and beverage revenue as MCO was enforced the entire fasting month.

Subramaniam said the government needs to speed up its vaccination exercise and to come up with a systematic subsidy programme for businesses affected by the MCO.

“Speed up the vaccination programme, especially for economic frontliners like hoteliers, and find ways to procure more vaccines. At the current rate, it is highly unlikely that Malaysia will achieve herd immunity any time soon,” he said. 

With the recent increase in Covid-19 cases, the government will need to consider commencing mass testing and isolating those tested positive to prevent further infections, he said.

While the MCO is needed, he said, it does not address or prevent transmissions by asymptomatic people whose numbers will only multiply with time.

Senior Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob recently said interstate and inter-district travel as well as activities that can cause public congestion are not allowed from May 10 to June 6.

The four-week ban also includes events involving government officials and the private sector.

Although the ban is until June 6, the MCO has been announced to be enforced until May 17 for six districts in Selangor, and until May 20 for Kuala Lumpur.

Several districts in Penang, Perak, Pahang and Johor have also been placed under the MCO after recording a spike in the number of new Covid-19 cases. – May 10, 2021.