Malaysia has no plans for mpox lockdowns
SUNGAI BULOH, Selangor – There will be no national lockdown for mpox, like what was seen during the Covid-19 pandemic, said Malaysian Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad on Sept 10.
He said the government was taking every measure necessary to keep the disease out of the country and ruled out lockdowns such as the movement control orders (MCO) issued during the pandemic.
He said measures against mpox included stringent health screening on inbound international travellers, with more than six million checked so far.
This involves the screening of all international points of entry by sea, air and land.
“Of the six million travellers screened so far, 52 were suspected cases but have since (tested negative).
“As a result, there has not been a single positive case of mpox to emerge in our country so far this year,” said Datuk Seri Dzulkefly.
He also urged members of the public to stay calm and be on the alert because some neighbouring countries have detected mpox cases.
“While we will avoid implementing any lockdown like the Covid-19 MCO, I want to remind the people to not become too relaxed either, as we know how infectious mpox can be.
“At the same time, I want to remind the public to remain calm as no cases have been recorded so far in Malaysia,” Dr Dzulkefly said.
So far, variants of mpox have appeared in limited numbers in Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand. – THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
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