KUALA LUMPUR: Lawmakers, officers and other staff present at the Parliament vicinity during the current sitting will need to undergo a Covid-19 saliva RTK test every Monday and Wednesday.
Dewan Rakyat Speaker Datuk Azhar Azizan Harun said the decision was made at Parliament’s committee meeting held on Monday (Sept 13) to ensure the Covid-19 chain of infection at the Parliament building can be controlled.
“The first test will be conducted on Wednesday (Sept 15),” he said in Parliament Tuesday (Sept 14).
Azhar said the periodic Covid-19 tests will be conducted at Parliament’s Banquet Hall for MPs while their officers will have to undergo the same test at the Multipurpose Hall.
The whole process, he said, would take about 20 minutes to complete for each person.
At the same time, Azhar also suggested all MPs take turns when entering the Dewan Rakyat.
“The meeting also agreed on the flowchart management for individuals who enter the Parliament complex,” he noted.
Apart from that, MPs with Home Surveillance Order (HSO) status due to close contact will be given the choice to vote wearing personal protective equipment (PPE), said the Speaker.
“This had previously taken place on Dec 14 and 15 last year,” he said.
Cabinet minister Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan is currently undergoing home quarantine after coming into contact with a Covid-19 patient.
Aside from Takiyuddin, Selangau MP Baru Bian was not at the Dewan Rakyat sitting after testing positive for Covid-19.
“The Health Ministry’s monitoring team will be at Parliament to ensure all rules are adhered to,” the Speaker added.
MPs are also encouraged to wear double face masks and face shields inside the House including during debates, said Azhar.
“The MP rotation system in the Dewan Rakyat is carried out every hour as part of a measure to curb transmission of Covid-19 in the Dewan Rakyat,” he said.
“The parliamentary management (team) has also improved the ventilation and air-conditioning system,” he added.
Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah previously said that Parliament, in collaboration with the Health Ministry and the National Security Council (NSC), had developed several special standard operating procedures (SOPs) to ensure the smooth running of the sitting and reduce the transmission risks of Covid-19.
Source: The Star
