No total lockdown, only stringent SOPs, says Tengku Zafrul

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 29 -- Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz has reassured that the government will not impose a total lockdown on the country's economy even if the worst-case scenario happens.

Instead, he said the government will continue to focus on strengthening and enforcing stringent standard operating procedures (SOPs) should the number of COVID-19 cases remain high.

“Assuming the worst-case scenario, it will not be a total lockdown on the economy. We will continue to focus on more stringent SOPs. Core issues such as the adherence and enforcement of the SOPs should be addressed,” he said during an interview with CNBC today.

Tengku Zafrul was responding to a question on whether the government would shut down certain sectors, or which sectors would be the priority to be closed down if the Movement Control Order (MCO 2.0) were to be extended, or the COVID-19 vaccine rollout were not as smooth as anticipated.

However, he said based on the current model, the government believes that the number of infections would reduce over time.

Malaysia recorded 5,725 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, taking the country’s infection tally to above 200,000 cases.

On other developments, Tengku Zafrul dismissed the notion that the strengthening of the ringgit against the US dollar recently would impact the country’s export performance.

“Yes, the ringgit has strengthened against the US dollar and other currencies, but as global trade is forecast to grow about eight per cent in 2021 versus 2020, Malaysia stands to benefit from that.

“And I believe the ringgit's performance would not have an adverse impact on exports,” he said.

-- BERNAMA