The semi-EMCO allows residents to walk in and out of the confined area, while the EMCO equates to a complete lockdown, says senior minister

by ALIFAH ZAINUDDIN/ pic by BERNAMA

THE government has denied its “silence” over the recent placement of three neighbourhoods in Kuala Langat under a semi-Enhanced Movement Control Order (EMCO), which was first reported on June 2.

Residents at Taman Langat Utama, Taman Langat Murni 1 and Taman Langat Murni 2 claimed they were caught off guard on late Tuesday when police and military personnel arrived to roll out barbed wire barricades around the housing areas.

“It is not that we are silent. As I’ve said, there are two kinds of blockades: The EMCO and a semi-EMCO, which is an administrative restriction.

“Under both circumstances, the police and armed forces will set up barbed wire fencing at the areas affected. Health officials will then come in to conduct tests on residents. The only difference is in movement,” Senior Minister (Security Cluster) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said in his daily press conference yesterday.

The semi-EMCO allows residents to walk in and out of the confined area, while the EMCO equates to a complete lockdown, he added.

The police earlier confirmed with an English daily that a semi-EMCO has been imposed on the residential areas until June 16 following the detection of a new Covid-19 cluster involving workers of a cleaning company.

All 9,000 residents of the neighbourhoods are now subjected to Covid-19 tests by the Health Ministry.

Authorities said 70% of the population are locals, while the rest are foreigners. It is estimated that 600 police personnel, including the armed forces, have been deployed to guard all three areas.

To date, there have been at least eight EMCOs that have been enforced by the government.

The last location to be put under a complete lockdown was the Petaling Jaya Old Town Market along Jalan Othman and its surrounding areas in Selangor, which affected 2,900 residents and business owners. The EMCO was in effect from May 10 until May 21.

Several areas in Selayang and Chow Kit were also placed under administrative control last month, similar to the current situation in Kuala Langat.

Meanwhile, Ismail Sabri said the government has not decided on any extension to the Conditional MCO (CMCO), which is scheduled to end on June 9.

“We’ve not had any discussion on whether to extend it further or not. As usual, there will be an announcement once a decision is made,” he said.

The CMCO, which began on May 4, has seen the gradual lifting of curbs to help restart the economy.

Malaysia has taken a huge blow from sharp declines in tourism, external trade and global crude prices, and is further dragged by abysmal domestic activity due to restrictions on movement.

The economy managed to exceed expectations with a 0.7% growth in the first quarter this year, though a contraction is expected for the April to June period owing to the impact from pandemic containment measures and downward pressure on exports.

Ismail Sabri also said the Education Ministry has yet to issue a directive instructing teachers to return to school and that schools remain closed for now.

He was responding to reported claims that some teachers had been ordered to report back for duty before June 9.