INDUSTRY leaders have urged Putrajaya to develop a virus battle plan that checks the spread of the coronavirus and allow economic sectors to stay open at the same time.

While the business community understand the need for movement restrictions, they said the government must look for ways to enforce health and safety regulations without shutting down the economy.

Koong Ling Long, who chairs the taxation committee of the Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM) said the business community was against a strict lockdown.

“Taiwan and Hong Kong did not completely lock down their economies but instead they stricly followed the SOPs. This would be ideal, he said.

He was commenting on the EU-Malaysia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Eurocham)’s warning of a full lockdown in a memo to its members.  

The memo, which was leaked, contained the details of a meeting between Eurocham and International Trade and Industry officials. It said it government was mulling a strict lockdown if Covid-19 cases were not reduced by February 4.

Daily Covid-19 cases have numbered in the 3,000s for nearly two weeks, breaching 4,000 on some days and hitting a record 4,275 on January 23. Active cases have surpassed 40,000.

To reduce strain on the healthcare system, the government has enlisted the aid of nearly 100 private hospitals to treat and make more beds available for virus patients. The infected who are asymptomatic are ordered to self-isolate at home instead of at the hospitals.

Koong believes a lockdown should be strict and complete if it was to serve its purpose and that the MCO, which allowed non-essential services to stay open, was wasteful.

“Non-essential retail outlets are allowed to open during the lockdown but the shopping malls are empty. That’s a waste of resources.”

He said Malaysians should bite the bullet and “endure short-term pain” to stem the outbreak and prevent bigger losses that would occur if virus went unchecked.

“Small businesses may be forced to shut and lay off employees but the system will not collapse. 

But if the number of Covid-19 cases spirals out of control, it will result in large-scale closures of small and medium enterprises and then the economic system could collapse.”

“It will be difficult to rebuild then as investors will leave for the neighbouring countries.”

However, if the government wished to enforce a full lockdown, it must first put into action all the plans and measures outlined in Budget 2021, Koong also said.

“We cannot wait for the third and fourth quarters of the year. Everything will have to be implemented in the first half of the year if companies are to have any hope of survival.”

Recent surveys of ACCCIM members during different phases of the MCO found that most SMEs did not have enough cashflow to last more than three months, and are using up their reserves to survive.

Malaysia Retail Chain Association (MRCA) former president Gary Chua said the retail market had gone from bad to worse.

Retail income dropped about 50% during the first MCO last year. It has dropped further to only 20% now, he said.

Chua, who is the MRCA food and beverage chapter chairman, said restaurants were barely surviving with only takeaway orders allowed.

The restaurants make more money from dine-ins, when the customer tends to order appetisers, desserts and drinks to go with a main course.

As movement restrictions dragged on, takeaway order had also decreased, Chua added.

The biggest problem for chain restaurants is high rent. With a daily takeover of RM1,000 and less, they cannot afford to payt RM100,00-200,000 each month for their premises.

“Even if they are given a 50% discount on rent, we still can’t afford it. We are not talking about one or two months, we are talking about nine or 10 months. So everyone is losing millions.”

Those with many branches were badly affected and those who had scaled-down earlier would feel less of the impact. Many restaurants were hard hit except for fast food outlets, he added.

Chua, who runs a catering business, said the the sector was facing worse business this Lunar New Year than the last.

He suggested the government consider allowing dine-ins with reservations and seating arrangements that allow social distancing in the restaurants. – January 27, 2021.