Anger simmers in Malaysia as the COVID-19 puts the country's healthcare system under pressure
- Syeena
- May 25, 2021
- 2 min read
Noor Nathasyeena binti Seth
25 May 2021
Five medical workers in white protective gear battle to resuscitate a coronavirus patient in a quarantine centre on the edge of the Malaysian capital, but eventually fail.
For many Malaysians, the struggle, captured in a minute-long video clip on social media, exemplifies their government's latest misstep in its attempts to fight the pandemic, as regular infections and deaths reached a new high in the past week.
"Our ship is about to capsize. The captain has lost contact with the rest of the crew "Last weekend's video prompted one Twitter user to use the hashtag #KerajaanGagal, which has been used by Malaysians to express their dissatisfaction for weeks.
Despite declaring a state of emergency in January, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin's government has been accused of failing to control the infections, causing public fury
Requests for comment to the health ministry and Muhyiddin's office were not immediately returned.
Abdul Malik Daim, 43, the patient in the video, died beside his bunk bed in the quarantine facility on Saturday, after a three-day stay after testing positive for the disease.
"Perhaps they should have had another check or told the patients to watch out for each other, so that they can get help in time," he told Reuters.
Malaysia has reported fewer cases than neighbours Indonesia and the Philippines, but its ratio of infections, at more than 16,000 per million, is Southeast Asia's highest, data from the Center for Strategic and International Studies shows.
However, the public anger may not have immediate political impact, as Malaysia's parliament is suspended during the emergency and elections are not due until 2023. Muhyiddin has said early elections will be held when it is safe to do so.
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