Recently, Dr. Azfar Kamal, a medical official at the Sungai Buloh Hospital posted on Twitter to advise Malaysians to be cautious of the next COVID-19 wave in December.
According to his tweet, the doctor shared that active wards and ICUs at the hospital are occupied category 4 and 5 (symptomatic and critically ill) patients.
These are tell-tale signs of an upcoming COVID-19 wave in the following month.
In a separate tweet, Dr. Azfar Kamal urged Malaysians to practice and adhere to the standard operating procedures (SOP) set by the government.
Please practice strict SOP, wash your hands, keep your distance, put on your mask at all risk. Avoid close contact. For those who are travelling abroad, get your booster vaccine dose as soon as possible. Stay safe,” he wrote.
His tweet has caught the attention of many. At the time of writing, it has been retweeted for more than 20,000 times and received more than 19,000 reactions, with many netizens expressing their concerns.
Ordered to take down his tweet
After an hour since the original tweet, Dr. Azfar Kamal shared that he was ordered to take the tweet down, though it is uncertain as to which party has requested him to do so.
The doctor explained that he was merely spreading public awareness as there is ‘nothing to hide’.
At press time, the tweet has not been deleted.
In the comment section, netizen shared their frustration over the request to remove the tweet.
Dr Azfar added that ‘prevention is always the optimum way beforehand’.
A netizen recalled the doctor in Wuhan who tried to warn the public about the virus but was silenced by authorities.
Another netizen also voiced his support over Dr. Azfar’s tweet, adding that his view was not pessimistic at all.
In any case, please exercise caution and strictly adhere to SOPs. #KitaJagaKita
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Cover images via Twitter
Editor: Grace Choong