Month: August 2021

LIPIS, Aug 13 — With the Northeast Monsoon season looming in under three months, the Rural Development Ministry (KPLB) is ready to mobilise its assets and facilities to help accelerate COVID-19 vaccination programmes in the east coast states.

Its deputy minister Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Mohamad said it was part of efforts to complete the vaccination exercise in the region as early as possible before the monsoon season begins in November.

“We have many facilities such as small and open halls in the rural areas that are suitable to be used as vaccination centres (PPV), which makes it easier for locals there to have access to the vaccines.

“The Community Development Department (Kemas) will be most effective as they are represented in almost every village, and the staff can be mobilised to help out with the vaccination programmes,” he told Bernama when met at the Dewan Jubli Perak Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah PPV here today.

Besides Kemas facilities, assets belonging to regional development authorities, such as the South Kelantan Development Authority (Kesedar) and the Central Terengganu Development Authority (Ketengah), can also be utilised.

Apart from the east coast states, Abdul Rahman said similar efforts can also be done at states with low vaccination rates such as Sabah, Johor and Kedah.

On today’s programme, Abdul Rahman said some 1,458 Lipis district residents received their COVID-19 vaccinations at three PPVs in Kuala Lipis, Benda and Padang Tengku.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

JOHOR BAHRU, Aug 13 — The Johor state government has directed the related agencies to increase registration counters and express lanes for the elderly at Persada Johor International Convention Centre COVID-19 vaccination centre (PPV).

Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Hasni Mohammad through a posting on his Twitter site said police would also improve regulating traffic flow at the PPV.

“The Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) will regulate the traffic flow better and MySejahtera should schedule appointments effectively. This crowded scene incident will never happen again,” he said.

Hasni replying to a Twitter user regarding a viralled picture of a huge crowd outside Persada PPV yesterday, including senior citizens waiting in long lines.

Meanwhile, the Tunku Mahkota of Johor, Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim in a post on his official Twitter and Instagram sites said he would investigate the matter and called on the state government to take action on the incident.

IN MELAKA, the ‘Retail Industry Vaccination Programme (RIVac) for retail sector workers involving 8,000 recipients in Melaka at Dataran Pahlawan Melaka Megamall in Bandar Hilir here began today.

State Unity, Community Relations, Manpower and Consumer Affairs Committee chairman, Datuk Ismail Othman said the 10-day programme aimed to dispense Sinovac vaccine to 800 recipients a day.

He said it involved frontliners of the retail sector such as cashiers and sales personnel in supermarkets, customer service personnel, security guards, supermarket, management staff as well as distribution and retailing workers.

“All recipients involved employers and workers registered under the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry (KPDNHEP) and the initiative is important to ensure no workers from the retail sector are left out of the COVID-19 vaccination exercise.

“We hope all retail sector employers register their employees under RiVac so that the effort could expedite vaccinating them as they are the group exposed to infection,” he told reporters after visiting the RiVac Industry Vaccination Centre (PPVIN) here today.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 13 — Indiaspora, a nonprofit community of global Indian leaders from diverse backgrounds and professions, has released its list recognising 100 Indian and diaspora leaders who are making a difference through their giving.

“It is incredibly inspiring to see so many philanthropists from our community who have translated their success into social impact. These leaders serve as an example of the importance of generosity and remind us of the many issues that need our attention,” said Indiaspora Founder MR Rangaswami.

With guidance from nine jurors and drawing from multiple sources, including reputed studies, earlier verified lists, and publicly shared documents, Indiaspora’s 2021 Philanthropy Leaders List recognises Indian and diaspora leaders globally for their philanthropic contributions and engagement.

According to a statement, Indiaspora’s 2021 Philanthropy Leaders List includes philanthropists from India and from geographies with significant diaspora migration, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, and Australia.

“Indiaspora’s Philanthropy Leaders List serves as a reminder to the diaspora to continue the important work of giving even once the crisis abates so our communities can meet future challenges,” said Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Fairfax Financial Holdings and one of the honorees on the List, Prem Watsa.

The List includes names from various industries including technology, entertainment, finance, and the law, who are using their philanthropy to address issues such as access to healthcare, quality education, water and sanitation, arts and culture, food insecurity, and employability.

Indiaspora’s 2021 Philanthropy Leaders List is one of several of the organisation’s philanthropy-focused initiatives. Other initiatives include the Philanthropy Summit, an annual event that brings together nonprofits, foundations, philanthropists, and others in the social impact space to share learnings regarding Indian and diaspora philanthropy.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 13 — Seven Sekretariat Solidariti Rakyat (SSR) activists were called in to the Dang Wangi district police headquarters (IPD) to have their statements recorded to assist in investigations pertaining to the #Lawan rally on Aug 21.

Dang Wangi district police chief ACP Noor Delihan Yahaya, when contacted by Bernama, confirmed all of them were present at the IPD today.

“They are being investigated under Section 14 of the Sedition Act 1948 and Section 233 of the Communication and Multimedia Act 1988. Several other individuals will also be called soon,” he said.

On Aug 7, Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Acryl Abdullah Sani warned that stern action will be taken against any individual who participated in the #Lawan rally on Aug 21.

Acryl Sani also stressed that the police will not tolerate those who organised or took part in any rally.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA TERENGGANU, Aug 13 — Terengganu will make full use of digital technology to continue to promote tourist destinations in the state as safe and low-risk COVID-19 locations.

State Tourism, Culture and Information Technology Committee chairman Ariffin Deraman, said the effort was important to increase public confidence to travel on holiday in a bid to revive the domestic tourism industry, especially in the island resorts and Kenyir Lake.

“The public should be assured that all industry players have been fully vaccinated and standard operating procedures (SOP) compliance are being monitored strictly by the authorities so that the tourism activities will not result in new COVID-19 clusters.

“We have also been informed by the Malaysian Hotel Association Terengganu chapter that all employees of registered hotels have received their vaccination appointment dates,” he said.

He said this when appearing as a guest on Bernama TV’s Ruang Bicara programme which discussed the topic “Post Pandemic Tourism: Is Terengganu Ready?” last night.

Last Sunday, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin said all tourism activities involving homestays and hotels within the same state would be allowed in states under Phase Two of the National Recovery Plan (NRP) for fully vaccinated individuals from Aug 10.

Ariffin, however, said most of the tour operators on the island resorts and Kenyir Lake were not in a hurry to operate as they preferred to make thorough preparations at their respective premises.

“Some premise owners informed me that they want tourists to do swab tests as a precautionary measure as they do not want to risk having their premises closed after re-opening.

“Similarly, the enforcement authorities must monitor the tourist jetties in each district as well as the number of individuals allowed in a boat and ensure that tourists comply with the SOP,” he added.

In a related development, Ariffin said the state government is currently testing an Artificial Intelligence health technology application known as Al Batuk (cough).

“Based on the initial study, COVID-19 transmission in Terengganu was due to inter-state travel, so we want to adopt the technology at the state’s border to be able to detect the health level of an individual.

“This move is to boost confidence of the public to go on holiday in Terengganu as well as to reduce the spread of COVID-19,” he added.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

SANDAKAN, Aug 13 – Cooperation of departments and agencies through Khazanah Integrated Operations (OBK) has strengthened the efforts of the Sabah General Operations Force (GOF) to combat activities destroying the country’s natural treasures, especially in the state.

Sabah GOF commander SAC Mohd Abduh Ismail said the cooperation would enable information on illegal activities involving flora and fauna in the forest and marine life at sea to be channelled to the GOF for immediate action.

He said GOF had previously carried out Operation Khazanah alone, when it was launched in 2019 but found it less effective due to Sabah’s vast terrain.

“So, I decided to merge the efforts of Sabah GOF with other departments and agencies because they (other departments and agencies) understand better and have a lot of information which can be shared, including those related to forest and sea boundaries.

“At the same time, it gives us easy access to locations where illegal activities often occur,” he told reporters after launching the operation in Sepilok near here today.

According to Mohd Abduh, OBK also has the support of the Forestry Department, Wildlife Department, Sabah Parks, Sandakan Municipal Council and the World Wide Fund-Malaysia (WWF-Malaysia).

He also reminded officers and members of Sabah GOF to always ensure the safety of the department and agency personnel involved from any threats when implementing the OBK which has been carried out continuously since Aug 9.

Mohd Abduh said the effort to protect the state’s treasures was also extended to a community awareness programme through a roadshow being planned.

“I have asked for help from the Eastern Sabah Security Command (ESSCom) in contributing ideas from Royal Malaysia Police on the roadshow.

“This includes providing awareness and information to the community, especially the hunting community as a livelihood, on the rules and laws in hunting so that our natural treasures will not go extinct,” he said.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KOTA KINABALU, Aug 13 — The Sabah government will continue to enforce the inter-district travel restriction in view of the worrying spike in the number of new COVID-19 cases reported daily in the state for the past few weeks.

Chief Minister Datuk Hajiji Noor said despite efforts by the authorities, among others, imposing the Enhanced Movement Control Order (EMCO) in affected localities, the numbers continue to rise.

“Therefore, roadblocks will continue to be mounted because inter-district travel is still not allowed. The people must strictly observe this SOP (standard operating procedure),” he said in a statement today.

On Sunday, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had announced the relaxation of some SOPs in states under Phase Two of the National Recovery Plan that included allowing inter-district travel for those who have been fully vaccinated.

Sabah’s National Recovery Plan Phase Two SOPs, updated on Aug 12, however, stated that inter-district travel restriction was still in force except for emergency cases; work (supported by letters from employees); COVID-19 vaccination appointments and those in the essential service sectors.

The updated SOP for Sabah also stated that permission from the police is required for movements across districts for emergency cases, married couples in two different districts and parents wishing to see their below 18-year-old children.

In this respect, Hajiji said, among measures to combat COVID-19 was to acquire as many vaccines as possible for the people apart from ensuring SOPs are adhered to at all times.

“We urge the people to refrain from holding gatherings that will involve many people for the time being. We want the people to be more disciplined. Only through this way, we can flatten the curve,” he said.

According to the Chief Minister, Sabah will be getting 200,000 doses of the single-dose CanSino vaccine next week following the assurance from National COVID-19 Immunisation Programme Coordinating Minister Khairy Jamaluddin that Sabah will get priority on CanSino vaccine supply.

With the arrival of the single-dose vaccines, it would help to boost the vaccination numbers needed to reach herd immunity.

To date, more than 1.22 million or 44.5 per cent of the state’s population above 18 years old have received the first dose of vaccine.

Meanwhile, Hajiji presented awards to 13 state and federal government departments and agencies for their significant roles in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic in Sabah at the Maal Hijrah 1443H Special Award Presentation Ceremony here.

The departments and agencies were the Chief Minister’s Department, Sabah Health Department, Royal Malaysia Police, Malaysian Armed Forces, Royal Malaysian Navy, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency as well as Fire and Rescue Department.

Others were Sabah National Security Council, Department of Islamic Development, Sabah Islamic Religious Affairs Department, Department of Broadcasting, People’s Volunteer Corps and Sabah Journalists Association.

Each of the department and agency received a certificate of appreciation from the Sabah government and RM10,000 cash.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency