THE government has refuted a report of an international television channel that alleged Malaysia discriminated against illegal immigrants when enforcing the movement control order (MCO) in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

Health Minister Dr Adham Baba said the allegation was baseless as Malaysia introduced the MCO to save everybody from COVID-19, regardless whether the person is a citizen or not.

“The Al Jazeera report that mentioned occurrences of discrimination is incorrect as the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 is to combat Covid-19 for all.

“So, we needed to ensure all detected (risks) were screened and isolated,” he said after a ceremony to present masks and soaps at SMK Tun Habab in Kota Tinggi today.

He was commenting on a 20-minute Al Jazeera documentary entitled Locked Up in Malaysia’s Lockdown, that claimed the government discriminated against illegal immigrants in Malaysia’s Covid-19 prevention efforts.  

On any action to be taken against the television channel, Adham said the government would correct the perception through Senior Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

“We need to correct it through our spokesman, Ismail Sabri Yaakob, who is the government spokesman heading the ministerial meeting on Covid-19,” he said.

On the fire at Women’s Ward 1 of Sultanah Aminah Hospital on June 28, Adham said the ministry is still waiting for a report from the state Fire and Rescue Department.

However, during his visit to the hospital last week, he was told the cause of the fire could be a wiring problem.

“We will receive the report soon. It takes time as a forensic report is more accurate,” he said. – Bernama, July 5, 2020.