Last night, Malaysian PM Muhyiddin announced that the country will be going into lockdown for 2 weeks from 18 Mar and citizens will not be allowed to leave.
Since then, there has been a fair bit of ambiguity about the fate of workers who commute daily across the Causeway to work in Singapore.
On Tuesday (17 Mar) afternoon, Malaysian immigration chief Khairul Dzaimee Daud confirmed that there will be no special concession granted to these workers.
In the brief announcement, Mr Khairul said that the restriction will also apply to Malaysians working in both Singapore and Thailand,
Not allowed from tomorrow until March 31.
This will also apply to the students who make the commute south for their studies.
Earlier on, State Assemblyman for Stulang, Johor Bahru – Mr Andrew Chen Kah Eng – shared on Facebook that the restriction will apply to “all Malaysians leaving the country regardless of their purpose“.
He shared the statement after apparently speaking to Johor Immigration director Baharuddin Tahir.
Another report by The Straits Times indicates that 400,000 Malaysians will be affected by the restriction.
They will have till tomorrow (18 Mar) to decide whether to stay in Singapore, or return to Malaysia for 2 weeks.
According to TODAY Online, Malaysians who work in Singapore scrambled to find accommodation in Singapore for the next 2 weeks while others struggled to make alternative work arrangements.
Source
Malaysians who spoke to TODAY Online at Woodlands Checkpoint shared worries over jumps in rental prices from the sudden surge in demand for housing.
Others rushed to find accommodation with their friends, families and colleagues here in Singapore.
Now that the restriction has been confirmed, we hope Singapore companies will be able to find accommodation for their staff who commute daily across the Causeway ASAP before 11.59pm today.
The restriction on people moving in and out of Malaysia might bring about a huge deal of inconvenience, but this is one way of slowing the virus from spreading.
Let’s hope it turns out effective in doing so.
Featured image adapted from Facebook.
In the closest of these GE2020 races, the PAP won with only 51.69% of the…
MPS is not a protest venue, Mr Shanmugam said.
In an Instagram post, SDP's Chee Soon Guan called PAP out for 'manipulating the system'.
A netizen claiming to be an employee said the sign was meant to say "Malaysians",…
Two 17-year-old teens have been detailed by the local police in relation to the incident.
There were no injuries reported, and the cause of the fire is currently under investigation.