Penang calls for contingency plans for virus screening
GEORGE TOWN: Penang wants the federal government to prepare a contingency plans for the smooth implementation of the Covid-19 targeted testing of foreign workers in red zones, which begins today.
State Housing, Local Government and Town and Country Planning Committee chairman Jagdeep Singh Deo said there are several factors that must be taken into consideration to ensure it goes well.
“The question is, have we got the capacity for the screening and have the high-risk sectors been identified? I would ask the government to first pinpoint these sectors and give them focus,” he told reporters yesterday when inspecting restoration progress at the 120-year-old Wadda Gurdwara Sahib (Sikh temple).
He also asked if a screening subsidy could be given to employers who could not afford to pay for the tests and would want them to be done properly.
Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan said last week that screening would be conducted in stages for foreign workers in Selangor, Negri Sembilan, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Sabah and Labuan.
“Employers only need to pay the service charge imposed by clinics or hospitals. For foreign workers who are not Social Security Organisation contributors, the screening fee must be fully paid by their employers.”
Jagdeep said “so far, 23,159 Covid19 tests have been conducted in the state and of this, over 15,000 were foreign workers”.
He added that as of yesterday, Penang had recorded 13 active clusters with 1,884 cases.
On the RM6 million restoration of the Wadda Gurdwara Sahib, Jagdeep said it should be complete by the end of 2021, adding that it was the first entry point of Sikhs coming to Malaya long ago. – Bernama