Total Lockdown: MITI is back in charge of issuing approval letters for work

The Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) is back in charge as the one-stop coordinator for businesses to get written permission to operate from tomorrow.

The National Security Council (NSC) said new approval letters will be required for the first phase of the third movement control order (MCO), otherwise known as “total lockdown” from June 1 to June 14.

“The NSC special meeting chaired by the YAB Prime Minister today has decided that a one-stop centre coordinated by MITI be established to issue approval letters for essential economic sectors to operate after receiving confirmation from ministries that supervise the related sector,” the NSC said in a statement today.

“In line with that, new applications for approval for travel for work have to be resubmitted through the COVID-19 Intelligent Management System (Cims) 3.0 portal coordinated by MITI and involving all ministries that supervise 17 essential services sectors that have been allowed to operate,” it concluded in the brief statement.

Yesterday, Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said that all existing permission letters issued by Miti previously for workers who need to travel for work under previous editions of the MCO would no longer be valid after May 31 (today), and that new requests for permission to travel for work from June 1 must be directed to the respective ministries.

Ismail Sabri had yesterday said fellow senior minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof would chair a meeting today to co-ordinate matters related to permission letters for employees’ travel.

Ismail Sabri had said only 1.5 million employees nationwide would be allowed to travel under new restrictions during the total lockdown.

Yesterday, Miti had similarly said that it is not mandated to provide approval for sectors other than manufacturing and manufacturing-related services (MRS).

Miti said that 13 of such manufacturing and MRS sectors are allowed to operate at 60 per cent capacity while five of them are allowed to operate with 10 per cent of their workforce from June 1 to June 14, but subject to Miti’s approval letters which can be downloaded from CIMS 3.0.

Miti said manufacturing and MRS sectors’ employees have to present Miti’s approval letter along with their company-issued letter of employment or staff identification card to enforcement authorities to enable movement to and fro their work premises.

But for other sectors which are not manufacturing and MRS sectors, Miti had said those companies are required to refer to the NSC or to the relevant ministries regulating their sectors.

Ismail Sabri had yesterday listed the sectors allowed to operate during the total lockdown. — Malay Mail

Related reading