Can Malaysia Recover From COVID-19?

I support MCO in Malaysia, but unlike majority of the population, I want an easing in lifting it.

MCO is very harsh, given that in Malaysia the situation isn't as bad as Wuhan. But when it was introduced, there were uncertainties on how bad it could turn as the tabligh gathering was massive and the spreading could be uncontrollable. I agreed harsh MCO was needed for the first two weeks.

But now we are entering a third cycle. And our daily new cases hardly inspire confidence the situation has improved.

The reality is COVID-19 is going to stay with us for a little while longer. It isn't possible to see zero new cases for a few months. If MCO has been successfully, we should be seeing a reduction in new cases. But we're not. We're not seeing spikes, but we are not seeing flattening either.

The core of this issue lies with the people, of which I really am tired of explaining again.

I agree MCO is needed, but I think majority of people fail to understand something: MCO cannot halt this virus. It's meant to only flatten, and when it has achieved its goal, it will be lifted. And when MCO is lifted, the very dangerous, second wave is lingering and can attack as swiftly and savagely and perhaps more viciously than the first.

Malaysians need to understand that while MCO is helpful in flattening the curve, it is also dangerous because once it is lifted, it triggers a mass exodus (thanks to bad MCO implementation earlier when people left KL en masse) and mass societal movement that the police and armed forces will not be able to control. When one infected person comes into contact with a fellow passenger, the spread could be so fast it makes contact tracing impossible.

People will make excuses like, it has been two months, let's hang out, have party, dine out, go to cinemas and everywhere and in one day they will be making trips and meeting many different people. It is a perfect opportunity for a second messy explosive wave to come.

So MCO should be lifted gradually, slowly, beginning with services that most people will look for, but arguably not essential. For instance, barber. Haircut.

Almost 95% of Malaysians oppose allowing haircut services to resume despite being allowed to.

Let me tell you why I support it.

There are two scenarios: In both scenarios, let's consider you do come into contact with an infected person. If you cut your hair now and get infected, with limited social mobility and services, the infected can be quickly traced because the government knows where to focus. If you wait for them to lift MCO, when people are mobile and pent-up desire burst its bank and people may get a haircut and subsequently go eat, go drink, go watch movie, go to the beach and go any parks, contact tracing becomes impossible and the spreading of the virus will become uncontrollable, defeating the purpose of MCO.

Which scenario do you think is better? You're being asked to choose the better of two bad options. Nobody says it's a good option, it's just that the other one is so much more appalling.

You could get your haircut done at home. That would be ideal, only if everybody cooperates and do so. But then again, had people cooperated, we never needed MCO to begin with.

Wait for 0 new cases? Look at China, it's still not happening. By the way, China imposed strict lockdown, levels beyond what Malaysia MCO is. Even then, the daily new cases in Malaysia does not reflect 0-new-case day is on the horizon. So it's easier if you do not count on that. Plus, 0-new-case is possibly because it is undetected, not because it is absent. There's a difference.

I have no faith Malaysia will recover from COVID-19 this soon. Not because Malaysia does not have the capability, but because, judging from the barber service response, Malaysians are not prepared for what may happen post-MCO.