Malaysia implemented the first phase of the total lockdown from June 1 to 14. However, public health experts believe that these two weeks are not enough to completely stop the spread of Covid-19. Hence, expert believes that the government must extend at least 14 days in order to curb the further spread of infection.
The Vice President of the International Medical University (IMU) and the former deputy Health general-director Prof. Datuk Dr Lokman Hakim Sulaiman listed 5 reasons why the total lockdown needs to be extended:
- The number of newly confirmed cases is still high (4 digits), and it is unlikely to reach below 3 digits in the next few days.
- The number of deaths, intensive care unit cases, and cases requiring intubation remains high.
- Although the number of confirmed cases in week 22 (May 30 to June 5) decreased slightly, the number of people tested also decreased
- The positive rate is still high, exceeding the 5% adequate detection threshold set by the World Health Organization.
- The sporadic cases account for the majority, which means that community infections are still common.
