Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin speaks at the ministry’s press conference in Putrajaya November 26, 2021. — Picture by Hari Anggara
KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 3 — Public health officials have detected the first case of the Omicron Covid-19 variant in the country, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin announced today.
He said the index case was confirmed after a series of tests conducted on 74 people with Covid-19 at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) in Sepang from November 11 to November 28.
He added that subsequent laboratory tests made the confirmation on December 2.
The index case is a traveller from South Africa who arrived in Malaysia on November 19.
“The case involved a 19-year-old, non-citizen traveller arriving from South Africa via Singapore on November 19, 2021 and has undergone Covid-19 RT-PCR testing upon arrival at KLIA.
“She is a student at a private university in Ipoh, Perak,” the minister said.
MORE TO COME