KOTA KINABALU: Deputy Chief Minister Bung Moktar Radin has called for a review of the Covid-19 swab test for travellers between Sabah and the peninsula, saying it is a burden especially for those with big families.
It is compulsory for people travelling from Sabah to the peninsula and vice versa to undergo a swab test three days before departure.
Bung said the requirement has proven to be cumbersome particularly when flights are rescheduled past the test result’s three-day validity period.
The Kinabatangan MP said the National Security Council and health ministry must find a better solution to this problem.
“When flights are cancelled or rescheduled past the three-day period, the test results can no longer be used and people have to retake the test. It is not easy to find money when this happens,” he told FMT.
He said swab tests are not cheap and many who had gone through the experience have complained to him.
“Maybe the authorities can consider making the validity period one week. Or, they can do away with the swab test and only require people to fill in health forms and follow the strict SOPs, as was practised earlier this year. In any case, a solution must be found soon,” he said.
In June, the Sabah government lifted the swab test requirement for Malaysians entering the state during the recovery movement control order period.
This involved citizens travelling from Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak and Labuan. They only have to fill in a health declaration form and abide by the SOPs set by the Sabah Health Department.
Last month, the health ministry announced that the 14-day mandatory quarantine for all persons arriving in the peninsula from Sabah would cease from Nov 25.
The ministry said anyone intending to leave Sabah only needs to go for a swab test three days before their scheduled departure, and those who test negative will be allowed to leave the state.