MEMBERS of the public are still keen to wear masks to protect themselves from Covid-19 infections even if the government decides to drop the masking mandate.

The mandate has been in place since August 2020 to stop the spread of Covid-19, but in recent days, there has been talk of the government deciding to relax the requirement.

On Friday, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the government would announce further standard operating procedure (SOP) relaxations soon as the country moves towards the endemic phase.

The Malaysian Insight spoke to Malaysians across the country to find out whether they would still mask up even if the mandate is removed.

Firas Fisal, 19, a university student from Selangor

Firas said he will continue to wear a mask because he feels safer with one.

“I think it’s not the time to completely remove the ruling,” he said.

“We need global effort in every aspect to stop the spread of Covid-19 and the mutation of variants.”

Samuel Roy Koshy, 25, an engineer from Selangor

Samuel said he will be wearing his mask mostly indoors in crowded areas where he is in close contact with many people.

He said wearing a mask is a good habit but agreed that it should not be made compulsory.

“For example, I used to wear my mask everywhere in the office, but now, maybe I will take my mask off at my desk,” he said.

Farid Hatta Borhani, 34, a writer from Ipoh

Farid said he will still wear his mask but will also appreciate it if the mandate is removed.

“I appreciate that it allows me to gauge the situation myself instead of having to mask up even when I feel like the situation is safe, for example, outdoors, walking alone, away from people,” he said.

Ushar Daniele, 33, a producer from Sabah

Ushar said she will wear a mask in crowded areas, especially when it is indoors.

When asked if it is about time to remove the mask mandate, she agreed because the disease is here to stay and the public has to adapt to it.

Sadiatul, 27, a saleswoman from Malacca

Sadiatul said she will wear a mask in crowded outdoor areas because she does not know other people’s health status.

“In my opinion, the use of the mask should be continued,” she said.

“Already a lot of leeway has been given by the government. If the wearing of masks is not continued, I am worried that it will be difficult for Malaysians to continue the Covid-19 SOP that has been practised for so long.”

Fadzil Daut, 27, a quality assurance manager from Sabah

Fadzil said he will wear his mask whenever he is out of his home.

“Even if the government relaxes the mask restriction, I’m probably going to stick to wearing a mask for a while until I’m sure that the Covid-19 situation is no longer dangerous,” he said.

Intan Shafinaz, 27, a telemarketing manager from Selangor

Intan said she will still wear a mask in crowded areas.

“I feel more secure with my mask on because there are too many cases out there and I’m not surprised if there would be a new variant,” she said.

Muthu Raman, 54, e-hailing driver from Johor

Muthu said he will still wear his mask because he thinks it is not safe just yet to not wear it.

“I’ve seen people not wearing their masks in crowded places and catch the virus, so I wouldn’t want to risk it,” he said.

“Plus I meet new people every day during work and I don’t know their health status. So it’s better to mask up for my own and my family’s safety.”

On Saturday, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the government was mulling over relaxing three main measures in the SOP for the prevention of Covid-19 and will announce them soon.

“The three measures involve coronavirus tests as well as the wearing of masks and scanning of MySejahtera when entering premises,” he said.

“These measures are still being assessed and discussed at the Health Ministry level.” – April 25, 2022.