He added that either he or the health director-general will be making an announcement on the issue before the current MCO 2.0 ends on Feb 4.

He said relevant government agencies and ministries will be discussing the matter before then. Ismail added that the decision will consider both the health and the economy.

According to a report, he said, if another total lockdown was implemented, 2.8 million people will risk losing their jobs.

Another 2.5 million workers will also face income disruptions causing difficulties in sustaining their daily lives.

He added the decision will also consider every affected party.

Citing the implementation of the first MCO back in March 2020, he said those coming from the B40 group such as daily wage earners and small businesses would be the worst affected.

On the daily offences, he said police arrested 482 people yesterday over movement control order-related offences.

Ismail said 444 were issued compounds while the remaining 38 were remanded.

Among the offences were failure to observe physical distancing, participating in activities at entertainment centres, failure to wear face masks and failing to provide materials for contact tracing or registration, among others.

A total of 3,106 compliance task force teams were deployed to conduct checks on supermarkets, restaurants, hawker stalls, factories, banks, among others.

Ismail also said police caught three illegal immigrants and seized four vehicles under Op Benteng.

He added that 660 people had arrived through KLIA yesterday and all are currently undergoing mandatory quarantine.

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