Covid-19: Better communications needed

COMMENT | As we all know, the government has put in place the movement control order (MCO).

The MCO was first announced by Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin on Monday, March 16. In his speech, the PM said that the MCO would be, among others, a prohibition on movement and assembly of masses all over the country, including religious, sports, social and cultural activities.

The speech, however, did not provide clear details of the MCO. There was, therefore, confusion regarding it. For example, nothing in the initial speech made clear about movements outside of one’s home, such as exercise and visits to parents and family members. There was no outright statement telling people not to go out without reason.

In fact, a day before that there were already rumours of a lockdown, when the number of new coronavirus cases shot up on Sunday. Many reported incidents of panic buying on Monday, and this was further compounded by the health minister and the prime minister, both stating that a "major announcement" was scheduled that night. This fuelled further panic buying by the masses.

The lack of details...