THERE will be no street processions January’s Thaipusam festival, National Unity Minister Halimah Mohamed Sadique said in Parliament today.

“The standard operating procedures (SOP) will be announced once they are finalised later this month,” Halimah (Kota Tinggi-BN) said during the ministers’ question time session today.

She said that there will also be no Chingay parades during Chinese New Year, which falls on February 1.

Halimah was responding to a question from V. Sivakumar (Batu Gajah-PH). She said the government had already prepared the Thaipusam SOP after consulting stakeholders on December 2.

“However, this is subject to approval by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the National Security Council (NSC).”

She said the pandemic management technical committee, which is headed by NSC, will meet on December 13, while the ministers will meet on December 14.

“The PM-chaired special committee on pandemic management will meet on December 15 to finalise the SOP,” said Halimah.

Traditionally, Hindus celebrating Thaipusam hold street parades during the festival, while Chingay is an annual street parade held in Johor.

Chingay celebrates the birthdays of Chinese deities, and is observed in Johor and Penang.

The government has barred all street parades and processions since the onset of the Covid-19 and movement restrictions in March 2020. – December 7, 2021.