CMCO's 14-Day Extension

The CMCO in Selangor and the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya is extended another 14 days until November 09, 2020. Sigh!

Anyway, something interesting came out of the shadows yesterday! Health Director-General Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah (left) issued a denial that the Ministry of Health had manipulated Covid-19 data. 

He explained all particulars were collated by MOH until 12 noon every day using the public health information system in each state. He also took pains to emphasize that data compilation “is not done by me alone but together with the team behind the scene from day one”. 

If there is no manipulation, why does he have to be so defensive?! 

Still, it is noteworthy to mention that a FMT news report today has the Malaysian Medical Association urging the health ministry to publish detailed breakdowns of individual hospitals, quarantine centers and intensive care units used to treat Covid-19 patients in Sabah. 

Their president Dr Subramaniam Muniandy (left) says information on the ground on bed occupancy in these locales, especially in the red zones, do not correspond with the figures presented during the ministry’s daily press briefings.

Meaning, the numbers don't add up. 

A case in point: State Local Government and Housing Minister Masidi Manjun (right) reportedly said 99.5% of the beds in Sabah were filled on October 22 – but this fact contradicted with the numbers presented by the health ministry. 

Muniandy adds that presenting statistics by using an average percentage for the entire state provides a false sense of security and dampens the urgency of the situation. 

Without precise information, don’t expect to come up with the correct containment strategies. It’s like having a machine gun that merely sprays bullets everywhere – it won’t work quite as well as using a sniper rifle to take careful aim, fire and hit the intended target.