Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) professor of public health Dr Sharifa Ezat Wan Puteh attributed this to the large number of Malaysians returning home for Hari Raya, the low booster shot rate among the general population, and slow uptake of vaccines among children.

Malaysia recorded 6,069 new cases yesterday, a drop from the 7,140 recorded on Monday.

“The Omicron variant has high transmissibility, and the Covid-19 vaccine is not 100% effective. Once the holidays arrive, it is possible that cases will increase,” Sharifa told China Press.

“It is still too early to predict whether the pandemic has eased or if things will get better (but) we need to look at the pandemic from other perspectives, including increased movement after the holidays and the booster coverage, especially since the situation regarding senior citizens and those with comorbidities does not look promising.”

She said it would take another three months for cases to subside if there was a spike after the Hari Raya holidays.

The government has allowed Malaysians to “balik kampung” to celebrate Hari Raya this year, after two years of not being able to do so because of movement control orders to curb the spread of Covid-19.

Sharifa also said that as the country opened up, the government should be mindful of the spread of the Omicron XE variant in other countries and prepare for the possibility of a similar wave in Malaysia.

The World Health Organization recently issued a warning about Omicron XE – a mutant hybrid of Omicron BA.1 and BA.2.

Speaking to reporters on April 7, health minister Khairy Jamaluddin said Malaysia had yet to record any Omicron XE variant cases and was monitoring the latest developments.

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