According to Astro Awani, state tourism, arts and culture minister Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said the Sarawak state disaster management committee (SDMC) had not discussed any change to its stand following Putrajaya’s announcement yesterday.

“We are different from the peninsula, we cannot close all economic sectors,” the PBB vice-president told the news agency when contacted last night.

Yesterday, SDMC said the state will be placed under MCO from today and that it is scheduled to end on June 11. The state was previously under a conditional MCO (CMCO) despite the increase in cases in recent weeks.

There were 698 Covid-19 cases reported in Sarawak yesterday, taking its cumulative cases to 45,436.

The move by the Sarawak government also follows the announcement by Putrajaya yesterday that it will guarantee full vaccine supply to the state by the end of August.

Vaccine minister Khairy Jamaluddin, in a joint press conference with SDMC chairman Douglas Uggah Embas, said the federal government will send enough vaccine doses for Sarawak’s over two million adult population.

He said Sarawak would be the first state to complete the vaccination under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK).

The prime minister’s office (PMO) last night announced a total nationwide lockdown, similar to the first MCO, with only essential economic and services sectors allowed to operate.

The National Security Council (MKN) said it will provide a list of the essential sectors that can open during the lockdown, while the finance ministry will provide details of an aid package for the people and affected economic sectors soon.