THE Sabah election is one of the reasons why the number of Covid-19 cases are now in the triple digits, said Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.

However, he said, the election had to be held within 60 days of the dissolution of the state legislature as mandated by the constitution.

“I admit that the election campaign in Sabah has also been one of the reasons for the increase in Covid-19 cases.

“The Sabah polls had to be held when the Sabah yang di-pertua negeri dissolved the Sabah legislative assembly on July 30.

“This is something that is inevitable because we are subject to the provisions in the constitution. Elections must be held within 60 days after the state assembly is dissolved. It cannot be delayed,” Muhyiddin said in a special address that was live- streamed on Facebook and relayed by major news oraganisations.

Muhyiddin and the Perikatan Nasional government have been getting flak from social media commentators over the surge of Covid-19 cases after the Sabah elections.

The Bersatu president said he imposed standard operating procedures (SOP) on himself when he was on the ground campaigning. This included leaving immediately after giving speeches and reminding the audience to adhere to proper SOPs.

“So much so that I had to make my own SOP. I came by car straight to the stage without going through the crowd. As I began to speak, I reminded everyone present to abide by the SOP.

“Don’t sit close to each other, wear a face mask and always wash your hands or use sanitisers. After speaking, I immediately got into the car and left the venue. I did not greet or touch anyone,” Muhyiddin said.

The Pagoh MP also reminded his officers not to hold programmes in areas which had been declared red zones as he did not want to jeopardise the safety of others around him.

“Despite getting the invitations, I had to decline.

“Yes, if included I wanted to campaign everywhere. But I also thought about the health and safety of the people who attended the ceramah, my officials and myself,” the prime minister said.

Muhyiddin said Malaysians should not point fingers at each other now but focus on combating the virus.

“The important thing is that we do not easily point fingers to find fault with any party. I know there are parties who will deliberately politicisie the problems that the country is facing.

“Let’s not care about them. We must focus on efforts to address this pandemic together,” Muhyiddin added.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Dr Zulkifli Mohamad al-Bakri tested positive yesterday for the Covid-19 virus after coming back from Sabah.

The former Federal Territories mufti was in a meeting with high-level officials, including Muhyiddin and Health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

Muhyiddin in his speech said seven ministers and six deputy ministers have been ordered to be quarantined, including himself.

Their quarantine will end on October 16.

The October 3 meeting was a special meeting of the National Security Council (NSC) and was chaired by Muhyiddin.

It was held to discuss the recent spike in Covid-19 cases, which began in early September and increased into the triple digits in recent days following the Sabah elections on September 26. – October 6, 2020.