‘Predictable, consistent festival SOPs crucial’

Kuala Lumpur: There must be predictable and consistent standard operating procedures (SOPs) for cultural and religious celebrations to avoid confusion and optimise compliance, says Malaysian Health Coalition (MHC). 

In a statement, MHC said the people should not need to wait for a new SOP every time another celebration approaches, what’s more when Covid-19 has progressed to a multi-year pandemic.

Apart from predictable and consistent festive SOPs, MHC strongly urged the government firstly to write and then enforce culturally-sensitive SOP.

MHC was referring to the SOP for Chinese New Year that created confusion, unlike the SOP for Thaipusam this year which served as a good example how SOPs which could be safely adapted for religious and cultural practices.  

Meanwhile, as there is still a lack of coordinated, government-led public education on vaccines, MHC also wants public education on vaccines relayed through religious and community leaders in combating conspiracy theories and misinformation that fuel anti-vaccine dogma.

“That said, the vaccine is not a silver bullet and the government must not treat it as such. 

“Other public health measures such as physical distancing, mask-wearing and good hand hygiene must continue long after the vaccine delivery begins,” MHC said.