We must now prevent a second wave of the 'economic virus'

(July 9): The Covid-19 outbreak in Malaysia hit a key milestone on July 1 when the number of new cases dropped to just one — a Malaysian returning from Turkey. There were zero new cases from local transmission — 3½ months after the implementation of stringent lockdown measures under the country’s Movement Control Order (MCO) on March 18. Indeed, the number of new cases has remained under control even after measures were gradually relaxed, starting May 4.

Malaysia currently ranks sixth out of 184 countries in the Global Covid-19 Index, a comprehensive, holistic and big-data-driven index on each country’s effectiveness in containing and mitigating the pandemic.