Chow acknowledged that disruptions to the emergency hotline have resulted in “certain risks” to those seeking emergency services, which he said should have been avoided.

NG MERS 999, which went live on Nov 16, is the new emergency hotline system built to replace the older Malaysian Emergency Response Services, or MERS999, system.

FMT has reported that community ambulances and volunteer units have seen an uptick in emergency calls from people claiming that 999 was not working.

“The new system should not have been implemented immediately,” said Chow today.

“Its feasibility should have been assessed first to ensure that public health and safety are always safeguarded… and lives are not put in danger.”

He said he hoped the relevant ministries and agencies would heed the concerns raised by all stakeholders who rely on the NG MERS 999 emergency system.

Chow also said that while he does not deny the effectiveness of the NG MERS 999 emergency system, information about its implementation and operation need to be more widely disseminated.

The health and communications ministries as well as Telekom Malaysia Bhd, who are jointly operating the new system, said yesterday recent disruptions were isolated, and that the platform was running as normal.

However, a community ambulance operator has disputed the government’s statement that there were only isolated incidents of people facing problems with the new emergency system.