Dr Kelvin Yii
KUCHING: Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii has called on local councils to allow grass-cutting services to resume during the third phase of the Movement Control Order (MCO).
He said the federal government has recently given the green light for grass-cutting services to continue provided that they are done in isolation.
“In Sarawak, we have our own Local Council Ordinance which gives us the autonomy to decide whether the local councils chooses to follow this direction or not.
“I strongly encourage local councils in Sarawak to give special consideration to allow grass-cutting works to resume and for it to be considered an essential service especially during this third phase of the MCO,” he said in a statement today.
However, he said if grass-cutting services were to resume in the state, precautionary measures must be taken by the councils and workers.
“Every worker should be screened first and they must carry out the grass-cutting in isolation.
“Councils can also do daily monitoring including taking body temperature of all their workers before they commence with their work,” he suggested.
While Sarawak takes all the necessary precautions to fight the outbreak of Coronavirus Disease (Covid-19), Dr Yii said the state must also not let its guard down on other diseases such as dengue.
“This year alone, Sarawak recorded 637 dengue cases from Jan 1 to Feb 29 which is a sharp increase from 314 cases for the same period last year,” he said, adding that 68 cases were recorded in Kuching within that period.
He said since the enforcement of the MCO, grass-cutting services had stopped and as such, overgrown grass, weed and even excess vegetation can be seen by the roadside or even in drains.
“That is why activities such as grass cutting or even flushing of drains should be allowed to be continued to remove any possible breeding ground of Aedes mosquitoes especially during the recent hot weather,” he added.