- March 21, 2020 @ 7:33pm
KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah government should speed up its own stimulus package to mitigate the Covid-19 effect, said Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) information chief Datuk Joniston Bangkuai.
He said other states like Johor, Selangor, Melaka and Perak had already announced their packages.
Last week, Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal had said that the state would announce its stimulus package to combat the effects of the deadly virus in April.
"But why wait till next month? As it is now, many business operators, especially the small ones, are already severely affected and badly in need of help.
"Apart from that, many workers, especially those in the hospitality and service sectors, have been temporarily laid off and are in dire need of assistance," Joniston said in a statement.
He said many of those affected were from the rural areas who, as breadwinners, need to put food on the tables for their families.
"Even small time traders who operate at ‘Tamu’ (weekly market) grounds are also affected, as even open markets are ordered to temporarily shut to contain the spread of this virus.
"Imagine the stress and burden on those hard-hit by the economic implication of the Covid-19 which they have to bear, and I believe many of these business operators and laid off workers have loans to pay," he said.
On another note, Joniston hopes the state is prepared for any eventuality with regard to the Covid-19 pandemic as Sabah has the third highest number of cases nationwide.
"It is our hope that the Sabah state government, through its Health Ministry, will also step up its readiness to not only beat the virus but to overcome its dire consequences on the state’s economy and the people’s welfare.”
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