KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 12 — A majority of businesses, eateries, and shops will be allowed to operate from 6am to 8pm daily under the latest implementation of the movement control order (MCO), Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced today.
The senior minister explained that businesses subject to the 14-hour window during the MCO are restaurants and eateries, food trucks, roadside and mobile vendors and food kiosks, food courts and hawker centres, including sundry and convenience shops.
Shops selling daily essentials, vets and animal food shops, laundromats, pharmacies, and even food delivery and drive-through eateries will also be subject to the 6am-8pm rule during the MCO’s 14 days, Ismail Sabri said.
“Hospitals and clinics will be allowed to operate 24 hours,” he said.
Petrol kiosks will be allowed to operate from 6am to 10pm with those on expressways allowed to open round the clock.
He said that daily markets are allowed to operate from 7am to 2pm, while wholesale markets will be allowed to open from 12am to 6am and from 11am to 4pm.
Ismail Sabri explained that staff within these essential services must first have their companies registered to operate during the MCO, and to make sure all employees are equipped with the adequate company permission slips and staff cards to present to authorities at road blocks.
“Even movements involving official government business must be accompanied by verification documents from the employers,” he said.
Don’ts
Among the activities banned during the MCO include night markets and bazaars, clothes stores, self-service laundromats, optical and spectacles shops, barbers and hair salons, spas and reflexology centres.
Social events that would attract a crowd, such as official functions both in the government and private sector, weddings, engagements parties, anniversaries, religious events, birthday parties, retreats and other similar gatherings are also banned for the next 14 days.
Also on the negative list are tuition, music, dance, art, religious (mengaji) and language classes, along with activities in nightclubs, indoor theme parks and indoor playgrounds, karaoke centres, and cinemas.
“Concerts and ‘live’ events are also not allowed,” Ismail Sabri said.
Other banned activities include tourism, sports and recreational activities and events, meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE).
Ismail Sabri said that unlike previous SOPs, MICE and social events will also be barred in states under the conditional MCO (CMCO), such as conferences and weddings.
“As for areas under the CMCO, non-contact sports involving no more than 10 people like jogging, cycling and others will be allowed while following the strict SOPs,” he said.
He added that Perlis and Sarawak, the only two states under the most lenient recovery MCO (RMCO) can stick to previous SOPs already announced, with one new regulation that bans interstate travelling in and out of the state.
