PHASE 1 AND 2 RESTRICTIONS LOOSENED
Cycling allowed, workers’ capacity at workplaces to be increased, says Ismail Sabri
THE government has agreed to loosen restrictions in Phase 1 and 2 of the National Recovery Plan (NRP), including allowing people to cycle outdoors and increasing the number of civil servants allowed to be in the office.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the changes to the standard operating procedures (SOP) were made in light of positive developments in the Covid-19 vaccination rate.
He said those who want to cycle or take part in individual sports could do so in their neighbourhoods provided everyone kept a physical distance of 2m to 3m.
He said the operation hours of daily and wet markets would be extended and would now open from 6am to 4pm, subject to the instructions of the local authorities and compliance with SOP.
He said controlled fresh markets could operate from 7am to 2pm.
On the civil service, he said workers’ capacity at government offices had been increased to 40 per cent, subject to instructions from the chief secretary to the government.
Mining and quarry operations, he said, could have 60 per cent of employees on site, subject to SOP.
He said the aim was to meet the needs of critical projects involving the repair and construction of roads in rural and urban areas.
He said under Phase 2 of the NRP, outdoor filming would be allowed with tight SOP.
The operation hours for businesses, meanwhile, would also be extended from 6am to 10pm, including for petrol stations.
Ismail Sabri said checks had been stepped up on factories and business premises to ensure SOP compliance.
He said this was done to curb the spread of the virus as there were too many breaches of regulations and SOP.
“Yesterday (Sunday), the compliance operations task force, involving 19,465 personnel, conducted 83,710 inspections and Covid-19 snap checks nationwide.
“They checked 1,539 factories, 14,945 business premises, 508 construction sites and 190 staff hostels.
“A total of 31 premises, including factories, business premises and construction sites, were ordered to close as they had flouted the SOP set by the government.”