JOHOR BARU, May 26 — Johor’s Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar urged the federal government today to consider a full lockdown as the country reported 7,478 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours to reach yet another record high.

He expressed concern about the alarming number of new cases and urged Malaysians to also commit to self-lockdown to break the Covid-19 chain of infection.

The 63-year-old sultan also stressed the importance of discipline in staying home when possible and not treating the pandemic lightly to avoid infecting others unknowingly.

"It is selfish to only think of ourselves! Think of others too!

"The government should consider a full lockdown as well, if the Covid-19 numbers show no sign of abating.

"Let’s swallow the bitter pill now, instead of suffering continuously in limbo,” the sultan said on his official Facebook page here today.

He added that he sympathised with frontliners, especially medical staff, who have to bear the brunt of the pandemic.

He appealed to the people to understand the frontlines’ exhaustion and depression outside of their duties as Covid-19 was not the only disease they must treat.

"Have pity on them. We must all do our part to reduce the burden on them and break the chain of infection for our greater good,” he said.

On the latest Covid-19 development, the sultan said that he was briefed by Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah via phone.

He expressed fear on the emergence of new variants of concern.

"If infections continue to rise, I worry even more variants of Covid-19 will appear.

"In these uncertain times, I also urge those who are able to step forward and help others who have fallen on hard times in any way they can,” said Sultan Ibrahim.

Malaysia today recorded three record breaking statistics — the highest number of daily Covid-19 cases at 7,478, the highest number of deaths from Covid-19, at 63; and the highest number of Covid-19 patients being treated in intensive care units (ICUs), at 756.