PUTRAJAYA has revised its amendment bill to increase compounds and jail terms under the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act (Act 342) following objections from the public yesterday.

The revision, which was given to lawmakers in the Dewan Rakyat after lunch break, notes three changes.

The first revision (amendment no. 9) says that the maximum punishment for individuals under section 24(a) will be changed to “RM50,000 or maximum jail term of three years”.

This is a downward revision as the government had earlier wanted to increase the fines for individuals to “RM100,000 or maximum jail term of seven years, or both”.

Under the current law, an individual committing the first offence under Act 342 is liable to a jail term not exceeding two years. The jail term for the second and subsequent offences is raised to five years.

The current law only allows the health director-general the power to impose a maximum fine of RM1,000 against individuals who flout standard operating procedure, such as failure to wear a mask in public.

Similarly, in the second revision (amendment no. 10), the government has lowered the maximum fine for companies under Act 342 from RM1,000,000 to RM500,000 under section 25(b).

In the third revision (amendment no. 11), the government has lowered the maximum fine for individuals to “RM20,000 or a maximum jail term of three years”.

In its earlier amendment bill, the government had wanted to set the maximum fine for individuals at RM50,000 or a maximum jail term of two years.

The government yesterday tabled an amendment bill to change 11 items under Act 342.

In an immediate reaction, the opposition announced that it would not support the government’s bill to raise fines and punishment under Act 342. – December 15, 2021.