FYI, it’s not and should never have been.

With the Covid-19 virus well and truly affecting the lives of people everywhere around the world, here in Malaysia is no different. Of course, as with any pandemic, face masks become hot property and often start to sell out like hot cakes. That being said, it seems that authorities just can’t seem to figure out if Malaysians should be wearing face masks or not.

Okay maybe it’s not that they can’t figure out if they should be wearing face masks, but more a matter of their inability to unify statements on whether face masks should be mandatory or not. It’s understandable that people are starting to wear face masks to go out given the fear of transmission, but with the revelation that the Covid-19 virus lives on the surface and is not transmitted by air particles, the need for everyone to wear a mask is simply just isn’t there.

It’s been established that you only need to wear a face mask should you be exhibiting symptoms of the Covid-19 virus, or if you’re just down right sick in general. Fair enough, right? So imagine the surprise of people when they’re stopped at roadblocks and being urged to wear a face mask in public by authorities, or when they turn up at the supermarket only to be denied entry because they’re not wearing face masks.

The problem was brought to light when DBKL issued a directive to make face masks mandatory at supermarkets and restaurants a couple of days ago in spite of Health Director-General Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah’s reminder that face masks are only required for those who are unwell or attending to the sick.

Today, two days after its original directive, news broke that DBKL has now cancelled that order and face masks are now “encouraged. Great leadership, guys! The health ministry and local councils have been sending mixed messages. Instead of being assertive and unified in their messages, it’s become a case of he said she said.

It’s plain to see that authorities lacked the assertiveness and initiative to nip this in the bud early on. A simple statement from the get go would have sufficed, but instead, we have to deal with conflicting statements. I get that these are unprecedented times but those in power have done nothing much other than show that they’re just not cut out for the job. Here’s to hoping that they get their sh*t together.