Communications and multimedia minister Annuar Musa said he would discuss the matter with the National Security Council (MKN), and present a proposal suggesting an SOP relaxation for the industry.

“Creative industry players have been affected by the restrictions for a long time. The time has come for MKN to consider relaxation on certain SOPs, especially for those who have been fully vaccinated,” he said in a Twitter post.

A survey conducted by the cultural economy development agency (Cendana) in June showed that many industry players such as musicians and artistes had been badly affected by the pandemic.

The agency noted that about 93% of industry players were affected by the MCO while 70% of them lost their source of income.

However, on Aug 5, former communications and multimedia minister Saifuddin Abdullah announced that a total of RM54 million out of RM89.2 million allocated for the Malaysian creative industry stimulus package (Prisma) had been distributed to the country’s creative industry players.

He said the government aimed to distribute the remaining funds before the end of this year.

To date, over 14,000 industry players have benefited from Prisma.