MALAYSIANS working in Singapore are advised to stay put while the republic goes into a partial lockdown  to contain the Covid-19 outbreak, said Ismail Sabri.

The senior minister said Malaysians can still work in Singapore and the Singaporean government has agreed to help support them with their daily necessities.

“I would like to advise them to stay in Singapore as they can still work and the government under our previous agreement agreed to provide daily assistance such as food and shelter,” he said at his daily press conference in Putrajaya.

Ismail said the matter of Malaysians returning home is also being handled.

“There is a slight difference between how Malaysia and Singapore is processing the matter. Singapore is following World Health Organisation procedures, where an asymptomatic people are not required to be throat swabbed, but in Malaysia everyone needs to be checked.

“We also need to know how many are coming back. Therefore, we are discussing with Singapore if they can provide a list of names, how many are returning. The list is important for us to make preparations,” he added.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong last Friday announced significantly stricter measures to address the Covid-19 pandemic in the country, with most workplaces to close from yesterday and all schools move to full home-based learning from today.

Lee had said except for key economic sectors and essential services, such as restaurants, markets, supermarkets, clinics, hospitals, utilities, transportation and banks, all other work premises will close for a month.

About 45,000 Malaysians are affected by the Singapore government’s measure, which it has likened to a “circuit breaker” to the chain of Covid-19 infections.

On Monday, Johor appealed to Singapore to allow Malaysians in the republic to return home in stages so it can better manage them.

Mentri Besar Hasni Mohammad said if the Singapore government could allow between 1,000 and 2,000 Malaysians to return each day, it would be of great assistance to the state government. – April 8, 2020.