The RM1,000 maximum compound imposed under the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 (Act 342) will be in effect again when the Emergency Ordinance ends on August 1.
Deputy Prime Minister, Dato’ Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said, it is different from the period throughout the implementation of Emergency Ordinance where the maximum value of the compound that will be imposed for violations of the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) is RM50,000.
According to him, the government’s action to increase the compound rate to RM50,000 throughout the Emergency Ordinance is to ensure that all parties abide by the SOP.
“When we declared the emergency, we amended the compound to RM50,000 for companies. If it’s the previous RM1,000, the companies are not afraid at all.
“Nightclubs are not allowed to operate, yet there are some that have been caught flouting the rule and have been taken action on,” he said after launching the Mindef Prihatin (Mindef Cares) Programme at the Wisma Pertahanan yesterday (July 19).
The move to increase the compound, he stressed, serves as a warning especially to those who are still stubborn.
According to the Deputy Prime Minister, the government’s goal is simply to break the COVID-19 infection chain that the country has been facing for the past year.
“RM1,000 doesn’t really seem like a lot for those who are stubborn as they are usually profiting tens of thousands of ringgit, thus they have no problem paying.
“The same with factories, when it was only RM1,000 for any violations of SOPs. However, when we amended it to RM50,000 for companies, many still think it is not enough,” he added.
Rosli Mansor
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