LETTER | Alarm bells should go off over Covid-19 cases in prisons

LETTER | The Health Ministry is being urged to step up on the safety protocols of inmates and staff at prisons nationwide.

The alarming rate at which prison inmates are being infected is cause to also step up safety measures in public places like the courts and hospitals where the inmates had been taken to.

Have there been any attempts to contact trace the judges, lawyers, court staff, policemen and the public who have been present at our courts when the prisoners were produced?

The mere act of sanitising and disinfecting prisons or moving prisoners to other locations alone does not suffice at the moment.

The health authorities must take a firm stand and introduce stringent measures immediately to contain any potential infection which may have occurred when the prisoners were taken to public places.

The lives of family members of those who came in contact or were in the same vicinity as the prisoners should also be considered immediately.

If the situation warrants it, the closure of our courts where the prisoners have been taken to should also be carried out immediately and all staff be tested and quarantined.

All lives are equally precious and we can no longer afford to be reactive to a health situation which is beginning to get out of hand.

Let us all stop the finger-pointing and move quickly together in stemming this pandemic.

The writer is Gerakan vice-president.

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