KUALA LUMPUR, May 26 — Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob advised errant Malaysians who managed to sneak back to their respective kampungs for the Hari Raya celebration to return home once the holidays are over.

In his daily Covid-19 press conference today, the senior minister for the security cluster said that even if they face a police compound, it is better for them to come back than risk losing their jobs.

"They might have used the excuse of working in a different state as an excuse to cross state borders since we allow that. Although right now there’s no work because of Hari Raya holidays, they might have used that excuse last week, before the state-to-state travel prohibition took place.

"However, as I said before, they might have successfully evaded the police roadblocks going to their hometowns but there will be no guarantee they can escape the police the second time, once they are heading back home.

"At the same time, we do encourage them to come back home for work. Worst comes to worst, they will be fined. If they fear the compound and don’t want to come home, they might lose their jobs,” said Ismail Sabri.

He stated that the police will maintain the state border blockade to ensure that the government’s ban on interstate travel remains enforced.

The defence minister also reminded civil servants that disciplinary action will be taken against those who fail to turn up for work after their Hari Raya leave.

On a related note, Ismail Sabri reminded the general Malaysian public that they are allowed to visit their relatives only on the first day of Hari Raya.

"The police will continue to monitor the villages and housing areas. Anyone found breaching this standard operating procedure (SOP) will be issued a compound on the spot by the police. Even though we generally celebrate Hari Raya for a full month, this year it is only allowed for one day.

"More than that breaches the SOP issued by the government,” he said.