PM: Govt to distribute free face masks to those in need

PUTRAJAYA: The government will distribute free face masks as part of its contributions to the people in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, says the Prime Minister.

Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said the process of getting the supply of 10 million face masks from China is ongoing.

"I have directed the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) to look into this and make sure the face masks are brought in as soon as possible.

"Once we have it, it will be distributed for free to all Malaysians who are in need of it.

"This is the government's contribution to all at a time of crisis," he said after chairing the Economic Action Council meeting on Monday (March 23).

The government had recently announced that it will buy 10 million face masks from China to support the demand in Malaysia.

On the new RM2 per piece ceiling price for face masks, he said that the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry have been asked to review the matter to see that the price is not fixed too high.

"At a time of crisis, the price should not be too high. I hope manufacturers will continue to produce the masks and also agree to a reasonable price," he said.

The Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry had announced last week that the ceiling price for a three-ply mask is RM2 a piece.

Previously, it was priced at 80 sen per piece.

However, the government wants this to be reviewed following complaints that the price is too high.