M’sians certified free of Covid-19 allowed into Sabah

KOTA KINABALU: Malaysians who submit a medical report that shows they are free of Covid-19 will be allowed into Sabah irrespective of whether they are coming for holiday or work, says Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal.

“All can come, ” he told reporters as he cleared confusion over the state government’s decision to allow Malaysians arriving in Sabah by land, sea or road to skip quarantine if they were Covid-19 negative.

Earlier yesterday, State Secretary Datuk Safar Untong said that the move was for those working or had work to do in Sabah and was not for social visit or tourism purposes.

Under the relaxed entry into the state, Malaysians arriving from Labuan, Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak were not required to be quarantined if they had undergone the Covid-19 tests before arriving in Sabah.

Shafie on Tuesday said all Malaysians including Sabahans outside the state entering Sabah would not have to undergo the quarantine.

But they are required to carry out the Covid-19 test three days before coming in either by air, sea or land into the state.

Those who test negative for Covid-19 will be allowed into the state without the requirement to undergo quarantine.

He said Malaysians and foreigners working in Sabah, however, would have to produce valid work passes or other valid documents of employment on arrival in the state.

In a statement on Wednesday, Sabah Health Department director Datuk Dr Christina Rundi said her department had been receiving many queries about the requirement for obtaining the Covid-19 test as well as endorsement of the Health Ministry.

She said that the state health department required the rt-PCR test for Covid-19 and the results be obtained from a laboratory three to seven days before arriving in the state.

Dr Rundi said that on arrival in Sabah, all passengers must fill in a medical declaration form. It should be done honestly.

Dr Rundi said that Covid-19 remained under control in Sabah but the threat remains.

As of Tuesday, she said there were 348 cases with one new case detected from a person who was returning from Beaufort to Labuan for work purposes.