KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 2 — The government is maintaining a strict ban against outstation journeys in the extended movement control order (MCO) to prevent new travel clusters from forming, Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob explained today.
The 2021 MCO that was supposed to end this Thursday has been extended until February 18, and effectively limits the annual homecoming or “balik kampung” for Chinese New Year, which falls on the February 12 and 13 long weekend this year.
“Many have asked before this on why interstate travel is still restricted. I would like to inform you that all decisions are made based on data that have been issued by MOH. When we allowed interstate travel previously, it had contributed to Covid-19 cases.
“There are 31 clusters related to interstate travel. That is why we stress that interstate travel is still not allowed,” the defence minister also in charge of Covid-19 security said in his virtual news conference this afternoon.
The government banned both interstate and inter-district travel when it announced the various iterations of the MCO last month in a bid to curb the surge in Malaysia’s Covid-19 that continue to chalk up four-digit cases daily.
Interstate travel was relaxed in the last quarter of 2020 despite the onset of the third Covid-19 wave nationwide in September, to enable various economic sectors to operate as the health crisis took a toll on Malaysians’ wallets.
Since late January Malaysia has been recording daily Covid-19 infections above 3,000 cases. The Health Ministry marked a new high of 5,728 cases on January 30.
