Malaysia Tops 4,008 COVID-19 Cases, 6 More States To Be On MCO From 22nd January

New COVID-19 cases surpasses 4,000 on 20th January

Malaysia has been trying its best to squash COVID-19 cases. But there’s always room for more to be done, as daily COVID-19 cases in our country have been surpassing the 4-digit mark for over a month now.

Just yesterday, 20th January 2021, Malaysia recorded a total of 4,008 COVID-19 cases, as reported by KKM. This is the second-highest daily COVID-19 cases reported since 16th January, when 4,029 new cases were recorded in Malaysia. Because the numbers are not going down, 6 additional states in Malaysia will be undergoing another round of MCO from 22nd January.

These states are Kedah, Perak, Negri Sembilan, Pahang, Terengganu and Perlis. They’ll be joining Penang, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Labuan, Melaka, Johor, and Sabah, all of which are currently under the MCO set to end on 26th January, pending news of extension.

Cases in the 4-digits for over 2 months now

No doubt, we’ve all been glued to our phones during the 6.30PM mark of the day to find out how many daily COVID-19 cases there are in Malaysia on that day, hoping to see the number trend downwards. But since Malaysia reported 959 cases on 6th December, and then 2,234 cases the next day, daily COVID-19 cases has not dropped below the 4-digit mark.

In fact, yesterday’s 4,008 new COVID-19 cases is the second-highest after a record number of 4,029 reported cases on 16th January.

COVID-19 20th January
Daily total COVID-19 cases have not dropped below 2,000 in recent days
Image credit: KKM

In total, Malaysia currently has 169,379 confirmed COVID-19 cases, of which 41,087 cases are still active. This places us as the 3rd country in Southeast Asia with the most COVID-19 cases recorded, just behind Indonesia and Philippines, as reported by CSIS.

COVID-19 20th January
Image credit: KKM

Of yesterday’s total 4,008 cases, Selangor recorded the most number of cases at 1,391, while Kuala Lumpur followed with 513 new cases. There are 16 new clusters, which makes the total number of clusters in Malaysia 685, of which 318 are still active.

But it’s not all bad news, as a total of 2,374 recovered COVID-19 cases was also reported yesterday. This is more than half the number of new cases. It also puts our recovery rate at an impressive 75.4%.

COVID-19 20th January
Image credit: KKM

MCO expanded to 6 more states in Malaysia

Because COVID-19 cases are not going down, Kedah, Perak, Negri Sembilan, Pahang, Terengganu and Perlis will be placed under a full MCO effective midnight tonight, officially 22nd January. The MCO for these states will last till 4th February 2021. They join 8 other states in the country to be moved into a second round of MCO.

These 6 states can expect to find similar guidelines already active in states that are currently undergoing MCO 2.0. Guidelines include restrictions on interstate and interdistrict travel, social gatherings, activities, and opening hours for businesses.

Guidelines for the MCO in Malaysia

This leaves Sarawak as the only state left in Malaysia that’s not under the MCO. As such, Sarawakians have been urged to stay extra safe at this time by complying with authorities and SOP guidelines.

2nd highest daily COVID-19 cases on 20th January

Many of us have been hoping for the best, but recent days have shown that the high number of cases being reported is sticking around for some time. So while we wait for brighter days ahead that will surely follow with a dip in COVID-19 cases, we can do our part to help curb the virus by following SOPs and physical distancing guidelines when we’re out. Let’s also remember to observe good personal hygiene habits by washing and sanitising our hands frequently, and wearing our face masks correctly, making sure it covers both our nose and mouth,.

More COVID-19 updates below:

Cover image adapted from: KKM & @menaraalorsetarofficial