Letter: Time for regulations to prevent importation of Covid-19

LETTER | The second phase of the movement control order (MCO), which begins today, is undoubtedly a critical period for Malaysians to determine whether efforts to break the Covid-19 chain of infection are successful or not. 

Malaysians here must include those returning from abroad following Senior Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob's announcement Tuesday afternoon that they will be brought home beginning April 3. They will, however, be brought by the authorities straight to quarantine centres from the airport to undergo a compulsory 14-day quarantine at the gazetted quarantine stations.

It appears that the measure was decided by the National Security Council (NSC).  

Under the NSC Act 2016, the NSC is undoubtedly authorised and empowered to control and coordinate government entities on operations concerning national security and to issue directives on matters concerning national security.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic is now widely accepted as concerning national security, the NSC does have a role to play.

But it should be remembered that the main legislation that governs, and provides for, measures to prevent and control the pandemic in the country is the Prevention and Control of Infectious Disease Act 1988 (PCIDA).

Which is why the first and second MCO are made under Section 11(2) PCIDA. It should not also be forgotten that the PCIDA is the legislation to prevent the importation of infectious diseases into the country as well.

Section 6(1) PCIDA empowers the health minister to declare areas outside Malaysia to be infected areas. The declaration is by way of an order in the Gazette just like the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases (Declaration of Infected Local Ares) Order 2020 [PU (A) 87/2020] which declares the states and federal territories in the country as local infected areas.

Despite the Covid-19 being a pandemic, no areas outside the country have been declared as infected areas. If there is such a declaration, then importantly section 6(3) PCIDA allows the minister to "prescribe the measures to be taken to prevent the introduction of any infectious disease into Malaysia from any infected area."

If the MCO is a measure to control the spread of Covid-19 within or from local infected areas, measures will have to be made under Section 6(3) PCIDA to prevent the importation of Covid-19 into the country.

Which is why the need for the measures announced by the senior minister to be gazetted as regulations under section 6(3) PCIDA following a declaration of infected areas outside Malaysia.

Otherwise, the measures will have to be gazetted under Section 31 PCIDA which allows the minister to make measures by way of regulation for the prevention or mitigation of infectious diseases, including the importation of Covid-19 into the country.

It is instructive to note that the Singapore authorities, which have seen Covid-19 cases surpassing 900 with a number of imported cases, have acted quickly to make two regulations as recently as March 25 and 26 under Section 73 of the Infectious Disease Act, which is similar to Section 31 PCIDA.

The regulations can be seen here and here. 

As such, it is humbly suggested that measures be made under Section 31 PCIDA if the minister wishes not to declare any area outside Malaysia as an infected area.

It's time for new regulations under PCIDA. The dire situation does call for drastic measures, but let's not forget the relevant law to legalise the measures. 

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.

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