THE rate of infection or R-naught (R0) in Selangor has dropped in the first half of the current conditional movement-control order (CMCO) against the Covid-19 pandemic, but restrictions are still needed to bring the figure lower, Health Director-General Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said.

“For the last one week since the implementation of the CMCO, we have done well but we can do better. 

“In this one week of CMCO in Selangor, we have managed to bring down (the R0) from 1.95 to 1.48. It’s hovering around 1.48 to 1.5,” he said at a press conference in Putrajaya today.

He was asked about the possibility of an extended CMCO in Selangor, due to end in seven days on October 27.

The current CMCO was imposed on Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya on October 14.

Selangor has been recording an increasing number of cases daily in the third wave of the pandemic, which began in September, and today reported 132 cases out of the national daily total of 862.

This takes the total number of Covid-19 positive cases in Selangor to 3,489.

Noor Hisham said the increase in cases in the state can be attributed to its population density and high rate of movement among residents and visitors.

He said the RO could be further improved if the CMCO is tightened for some sectors and the people strictly obey orders by staying at home if they have no business outside. 

Asked by reporters if the CMCO will be extended, he said: “We will see day by day. Every day counts.”

“Without changing the strategy of CMCO, we allow only the economy sector to function, while tightening the social, sports and education sectors. 

“If they (social, sports, education) can hold on for a week or two, while the economy sector continues, then I think we can improve… (and) bring down the R0 or the cases,” he said.

Explaining the current third wave of the pandemic, he said Selangor began to see an increase in the number of cases at the end of September as people returned from Sabah, which had its state elections on September 26. 

Selangor’s first cluster in the third wave involved a family that had returned from Sabah on September 28, he said, adding that cases began increasing consistently since October 2 and has continued till today.

Using Kedah as an example, Noor Hisham said Selangor can follow suit to reduce its R0 value. 

He said Kedah now records an R0 value of 0.7 and that the ministry is looking to gradually decrease it to 0.3 or below, bringing an end to transmissions in the state. 

At the current R0 value of 1.5, Malaysia would see 1,300 daily cases by October 31, but Noor Hisham said this should not be allowed to happen. 

“We do not want to go there. So we want everyone to come together and bring down the cases.” – October 20, 2020.