Remember when Malaysia first implemented a lockdown on 18 March?
It was a simpler time, when visiting your friends wasn’t illegal and bubble tea was still available.
Back then, only a few countries had imposed lockdowns, so Singaporeans started panicking when Malaysia announced one and resorted to cleaning supermarkets out to ease their anxiety.
Now, we’re in a lockdown of our own (even though we’re not calling it one) and lockdown extensions are more common than a stupid challenge on TikTok.
So, you probably won’t be too surprised that yet another country has extended their lockdown, and it’s the one we share a border with.
Everything About M’sia’s Extension of Their MCO That’ll End Later Than Our Circuit Breaker
Malaysians have been looking forward to 12 May for quite a while now, after being on lockdown for nearly two months.
That’s because 12 May was supposed to be the day that could all leave their houses and roam freely across the country.
But those dreams have been dashed yet again.
Malaysia’s movement control order (MCO) will be extended for a further month until 9 Jun, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced at 2pm today (10 May).
For those of you who have lost track of time and think it’s 3 September 2025 today, 9 June 2020 is 8 days after our circuit breaker is expected to end.
This is Malaysia’s fourth extension since it was enforced on 18 March.
As CNA reported, there have been signs that Malaysia’s MCO is working.
At the start of the lockdown, the country was seeing a three-digit hike in new infections, but now that has been brought down to mostly a two-digit increase beginning mid-April.
Since 4 May, the number of new cases daily has also been under 70.
At the time of writing, Malaysia has 6,589 confirmed cases and 108 deaths.
Nearly 75% of the patients have recovered.
So, why has the government chosen to extend the lockdown?
The People Want It Too
In his special address, the prime minister said he made the decision based on public opinion as well as the advice of some government organisations.
“Based on public opinion, I realised that people want the government to continue to take the necessary steps to fight against the epidemic.
“Therefore, on the advice of the Ministry of Health and the National Security Council, I would like to announce that the conditional MCO, which was enforced until May 12, will be extended until Jun 9, which is another four more weeks,” he said.
Pretty sure it’s not this guy:
A Relaxed Lockdown
Malaysia’s lockdown measures won’t be as strict as they were at the start, however.
This is basically a continuation of their “conditional MCO”, where nearly all economic activities can continue while their borders and schools will be closed.
Under this relaxed lockdown, businesses or events that involve mass gatherings, like football, rugby, night clubs, entertainment outlets, swimming at public pools, religious mass gatherings, exhibitions, and Ramadan food bazaars, would still be banned.
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But limited interstate travel for families who are separated will be permitted, as Hari Raya is coming up.
Visitations would be also allowed among family members and neighbours living in the same state, limited to 20 people at a time, reported Free Malaysia Today.
Nevertheless, PM Yassin urged people to abide by the SOPs, including practising social distancing, wearing masks, and using hand sanitiser.
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“We have tried our best to fight Covid-19, and there are signs of success. But let us not be careless. We are still in the early stages of the CMCO, and with many people going out to work, the risk of infection increases, so these coming weeks are critical.”
If there is a surge in the number of cases, he added, the government would have to implement enhanced movement control order in those places.
So, while we’re here complaining about our extension of the circuit breaker with over 700 new cases daily, Malaysia has extended its MCO even though they’ve had less than 70 new infections in the same amount of time.
It goes to show that we shouldn’t be too impatient to go back to normal, because if we do and the infections skyrocket again, we might have another month-long circuit breaker on our hands.
Reader: Yet another month without bubble tea?
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Exactly.
Reader: That’s something I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy.
That’s why we should all stay at home as much as possible for the next three weeks until the circuit breaker ends.
Yes, the number of local cases reported today was just 3, the lowest since the start of the circuit breaker.
But if there’s anything we’ve learned from this pandemic, it’s that complacence will often be punished.
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