PUTRAJAYA, March 29 — Leaving the house for up to four times a day to buy food was among the dishonest excuses given by Malaysians to go out under the movement control order (MCO).

Senior Minister (Security Cluster) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the excuse given was clearly insincere and with the intention to cheat.

‘’Some gave the excuse to buy food, but up to four times a day, to the point the police recognise their faces, clearly it was not a genuine excuse,’’ he told a media conference after chairing a special ministerial committee meeting on the MCO here today.

He said some of them who were checked were still hanging out at stalls and, worse still, flouted the MCO.

The MCO, aimed at curbing the spread of Covid-19, entered its 11th day yesterday and saw the arrests of 649 individuals, or double that of the previous day.

In the meantime, he said there were still business premises which were not included in the essential services category being opened during the MCO.

He said only premises which were related to food supply and health were allowed to be opened during the implementation of MCO.

‘’A total 3,223 premises were inspected and some (not essential services) were ordered closed,’’ he said.

Meanwhile, he said a tighter standard operating procedure (SOP) was expected to be announced tomorrow. — Bernama