PETALING JAYA: Exactly one year since the Covid-19 pandemic first hit Malaysia, health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah has expressed disappointment that the battle against the virus is far from over.

“It saddens me that we have endured one year of fighting against Covid-19. The end is nowhere near to be seen,” he said in a tweet.

Highlighting the physical and mental fatigue from the pandemic, Noor Hisham urged the public to “soldier on”, saying they must “shoulder this responsibility to save our country together”.

He reminded everyone to comply with the standard operating procedures and to stay at home whenever possible to break the chain of infections.

“We must be united and together the fight will go on, God willing,” he said.

Meanwhile, Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii has said the government cannot solely blame the lack of SOP compliance on the part of the people for the surge of infections, as announcements in relation to the pandemic had been confusing and contradictory.

Yii called for a joint task force of medical experts to provide solutions to the gaps in the public health response from the past year, reiterating the calls from many quarters for a “whole of society” approach in overcoming the virus.