24 April
State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi wrote on her Facebook page yesterday that it has been decided to extend the rules and directives issued by the National Central Committee on Prevention, Control and Treatment of COVID-19 disease from 30 April to 15 May. This is what she wrote:
It has been decided to extend the rules and regulations issued by the National Central Committee on Prevention, Control and Treatment of COVID-19 from 30 April to 15 May. Have our people lost their stamina? Since this is a long distance run, we need to develop our stamina. As of now, no country has been able to declare that they have won the battle against the COVID-19 disease. Some countries are even saying that the first wave is over but the second wave is rising.
In Myanmar, the first COVID wave is still with us. Just as it is impossible to know how high the wave is going to be, we still don’t know when the wave will subside. So we have to hope for the best and prepare for the worse.
Since we have requested workers to wait until April 30, those workers waiting at the border will be coming back. We are now making health, quarantine and transport plans, so that they can return to their home towns in comfort and security.
In the interest of the State, we are also making plans to utilize and organize the strength of volunteers, who constitute an important element in combatting COVID-19, in a systematic manner. The motto of this group will be: Metta (loving kindness), Saga (charity) and Viriya (determination). Metta, Saga and Variya for the country. (Translated by Kyaw Myaing)
