Partial shutdown and 9 news from yesterday

KINI ROUNDUP | Here are key headlines you may have missed yesterday, in brief.

1. Most businesses will have to close from tomorrow, March 18, until the end of the month as the government is imposing a movement control order in a bid to curb the Covid-19 pandemic.

2. Former health minister Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, who has advocated for a Singapore-style intense social distancing instead of a China-style lockdown, has lauded the government’s announcement of the order.

3. Panic-buying (photo, at the top) has hit multiple supermarkets in Malaysia as the number of Covid-19 cases continue to soar, and shoppers feared the worst from Muhyiddin’s hint of a major announcement.

4. Health Minister Dr Adham Baba said Malaysia has 926 ventilators nationwide and another 800 on order. These lifesaving devices will be needed for Covid-19 patients who become critically ill, but whether these are enough will hinge on the success of containment efforts.

5. The government will provide RM600 per month for each eligible employee forced to take no-pay leave over the Covid-19 pandemic.

6. The Registrar of Societies has imposed a ban on all programmes, activities and annual general assemblies for all organisations under its purview, until June 30.

7. Organisers of a tabligh gathering in Sri Petaling have urged participants to cooperate with the efforts of the authorities to curb the spread of Covid-19.

8. Mukhriz Mahathir is challenging the incumbent Muhyiddin for the Bersatu presidency in the party election, while Bersatu chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad remains unopposed as party chairperson.

9. Four people were killed and one went missing following a fire at the Pengerang Integrated Complex in Johor.

10. Malaysiakini is urging readers to be wary of misinformation circulated alongside an article from the news portal. While the article is genuine, its contents does not suggest a lockdown as implied by a message that has gone viral.