People depressed by high covid numbers says Najib

September 17, 2021

‘Of course the people are stressed when confined they were for 6 out of 8 months due to MCO but the cases are getting higher’ that is what former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said.

It was reported that 8 out of 10 Malaysians surveyed said they were increasingly depressed after the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, the government said.

That is the ratio of how difficult the situation is for Malaysians.

Najib said after the outbreak of the third wave and the implementation of MCO (Movement Control Order) 2.0, almost 80% of parents said their lives were beginning to be affected in terms of economy and mental health.

“Before the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic and the implementation of PKP 2.0 earlier this year, 49.4% of parents said their lives and families were almost back to normal and that the majority of them began to be sensitive, understanding and adopting a ‘new norm’ way of life,” according to the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development in a written reply in the Dewan Rakyat today.

The findings were obtained based on an online survey conducted by the National Population and Family Development Board (LPPKN) on 5 to 14 March this year.

The survey involved 1,148 respondents consisting of Malaysian mothers and fathers aged 18 years and above and have children aged 7 to 24 years only.

The following are some of the important information obtained from the survey: –

– Almost 28% of the parents stated that their financial situation was getting worse than during the previous pandemic wave period and the implementation of PKP.

-84.1% of the parents experienced emotional distress or stress (anxious, nervous and restless) during the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.

-21.3% of the parents experience emotional stress due to their children’s education.

– 16.4% of the respondents said they were depressed due to limited involvement in outdoor activities and had to be confined.

– 12.2% were depressed due to the uncertain implementation period of the PKP.

– 63.0% of them said they had experienced depression due to emotional stress. As a result of the depression, 20.4% of parents began to have difficulty controlling their anger.

– this is followed by those who have difficulty in sleeping peacefully (16.8%) and frequent headaches or stomach aches (15.8%),” the ministry explained.

Therefore, an integrated recovery scheme should be done to raise the morale and spirit of the people to face the ‘new norms’ of life.

So, what Datuk Seri Najib suggested in his presentation when he spoke in Parliament was very much in line with the problems that arose as a result of the long confinement faced by Malaysians.