Bangkok, July 8, (dpa/GNA) – Producers of medical gloves in Malaysia on Thursday called on the government to allow factories forced to close as part of a strict lockdown to resume operating.
The Malaysian Rubber Gloves Manufacturers Association (MARGMA) said its members had received “a flood of messages from embassies and hospitals around the world” over the recent closure of factories in the industrialized region of Selangor, where, the group said, around 58 per cent of the world’s medical and surgical gloves are made.
MARGMA President Supramaniam Shanmugam said the association was “pleading with our government” to “immediately reinstate” production in Selangor.
Malaysian factories produce between 60 and 70 per cent of the world’s supply of rubber gloves. Demand for medical and surgical variants has surged since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.
Shanmugan said Malaysia has “a responsibility to ensure no disruption to this very essential medical item.”
Top Glove, which describes itself as the world’s biggest producer of gloves, said on Wednesday it had suspended operations in Selangor over the lockdown rules.
Malaysia’s government imposed a third pandemic lockdown almost two months ago and last week further tightened rules in regions reporting high coronavirus case numbers, including Selangor.
Malaysia’s Health Ministry reported almost 9,000 new virus cases on Thursday, the second-highest one-day tally since the start of the pandemic.
Malaysia’s coalition government looked to be on the brink of collapse on Thursday after its biggest member party called on Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin to step down and criticized his handling of the pandemic.
GNA