By Irwan Shafrizan Ismail
SHAH ALAM, April 19 — Selangor Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari said the free Covid-19 drive-thru screening initiative would be extended in other hotspots in the state, following the overwhelming response from the public.
He said the operation, which began yesterday at Dewan Raja Muda Musa in Section 7, here, would be implemented in other areas based on the localised demand and the multipurpose hall that can be utilised for the purpose.
“We have many multipurpose halls that we can make use of and we are looking into running the initiative in other hotspots, especially in Petaling, Klang and Hulu Langat.
“What we hope to achieve is to break the chain of the Covid-19 infection the soonest possible, but it is not an absolute guarantee if we don’t practise social distancing and take the necessary precautionary measures,” he said when met during his visit at the drive-thru screening operation here today.
Meanwhile, Amirudin said the state will carry out more mass screenings to stop the unexpected spread of the coronavirus or sporadic cases.
He stressed that although there has been positive development on the outbreak, preventive steps have to be continued even if the number of cases has dropped to zero.
“We have to be careful with the cases that are brought from other countries, like what is happening in South Korea and China. After they have successfully eradicated the disease, new cases are emerging from those returning from abroad.
“This should be taken as an example so that we do not repeat the same mistakes,” he said.
Earlier, Amirudin said the state government aims to get 500 people screened under the drive-thru screening programme.
“We are aiming the hotspot areas first. We have already set up 20 teams of doctors and volunteers and starting tomorrow, we will conduct the screening every day,” he said in a Twitter response when asked why the drive-thru testing is conducted only in Shah Alam.
The free testing is open especially for senior citizens and those who have symptoms such as fever, cold, cough and sore throat.
The operation hours are from 10am to 12pm, and 2pm to 6pm. Results from the testing will be available within 24 to 48 hours.
Since April 11, the state administration had conducted big-scale Covid-19 testing operations in several identified red zones across Selangor.
