Kuching MP says Health Ministry should phase out ‘check-in’ on MySejahtera
KUCHING: The federal government and Health Ministry should start phasing out the need for the public to ‘check-in’ on their MySejahtera mobile application when entering a premises, said Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii.
He said the country has reached the endemic stage and society should learn to live with Covid-19, especially in view of government’s plan to open up borders and lessen Covid-19 restrictions.
“The main purpose for the ‘check-in’ feature was for contact tracing and it was important then when our strategy was containment and even mitigation.”
“However, now with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) being changed by the Ministry of Health where quarantine is no more needed for close contacts and testing strategy is only for the symptomatic, the ‘check in’ function has little epidemiological value,” said Dr Yii.
The Bandar Kuching MP said millions of Malaysians had rigorously obliged with the government’s directive to ‘checkin’ via their MySejahtera app and many were even fined thousands of ringgit for not doing so.
“But how many cases were actually detected and the public notified through this supposed ‘check-in’ contact tracing feature under MySejahtera?” he asked.
Thus, Dr Yii called on the government to clarify on the statistics and percentage of cases detected through the MySejahtera contact-tracing mechanism.
“With this also, it helps address some of the concerns the public may have when it comes to data privacy and data ownership, as such ‘check-in’ or ‘surveillance’ data are no more input into the app.”
He said the government must clarify on all the public concerns raised and allow matters related to the MySejahtera app to be investigated through an independent commission to ensure the strictest governance.
However, Dr Yii remarked that MySejahtera could still have a role to play in the future, particularly on pandemic management.
“Such contact tracing features could be upgraded in preparation for future pandemics and only reactivated when time comes to ensure we do not fall behind again in controlling the spread of any infectious disease.”
He said the MySejahtera app could be converted into a ‘green pass system’, where only individuals with green status on the app are permitted to carry out allowed activities stipulated by the government.
“So, all we need to do is flash it to authorities at any entry point to enter rather than scan QR codes.”
“If needed, the authorities can scan our QR code at random to verify the authenticity of our vaccination certificate or even test result from time to time for monitoring and enforcement activities,” said Dr Yii.
He further said the authenticity of vaccination certificate in MySejahtera app can be better protected by utilising blockchain technology.
“So, as we move into endemicity, our strategy must change and the different requirements by government must be backed by data and science and added epidemiological value.”
Dr Yii strongly believes the government must phase out the ‘check-in’ function of MySejahtera and reallocate the additional investment that was earmarked to upgrade the app to increase the country’s healthcare system capacity instead.