PUTRAJAYA: Some 7,500 people including Malaysians returning from abroad and foreigners permitted to enter the country are being quarantined at 122 quarantine centres nationwide.
Senior Minister (Security Cluster) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the quarantine centres, which include 45 hotels rated three-star and above, were gazetted by the government to house those entering the country from overseas
Addressing an issue that went viral in the social media, Ismail said those who wanted to be quarantined at five-star hotels would have to bear the cost on their own.
“The hotels (gazetted as quarantine centres), within the RM150 budget including accommodation and food, are funded by the government.
“If there are others who want to choose other hotels or other types of rooms (which are beyond RM150), they will have to bear the cost themselves,” he said at a press conference today.
Even such, Ismail, who is also the Defence Minister, said those returning from abroad can only choose to be quarantined at hotels gazetted by the government.
“The compulsory quarantine not only applies to Malaysians returning from abroad, but also to foreign diplomats permitted to enter the country.
“We were approached by embassies to allow their representatives to be quarantined at (four-star or five-star) hotels, in which case they will bear the cost,” he said.
Under the ruling which came into effect on April 3, all Malaysians returning from overseas as well as foreigners permitted to enter the country would be placed under compulsory quarantine for 14 days.
The ruling, which is one of the efforts by the government to contain imported Covid-19 cases, applies to those entering the country irrespective of flights - chartered or commercial.