The state of Sabah has seen an alarming increase in Coronavirus cases and now has the highest number of cases in the whole of Malaysia. With this rapid jump, medical front liners are quickly becoming overwhelmed and urgently need attention and support. In a recent Facebook live show, supported by Property Hunter,  awareness and RM68,000 in funds total were raised in efforts to bring a solution to the table. 

A call was made to the government by Datuk Chua Soon Ping to seriously consider cooperating with hotels and restaurants to ease the economic downfall caused by the pandemic. He is the Deputy President of the Sabah Real Estate Developers Association (SHAREDA) and the Group Managing Director of the Bay Suites developer, Remajaya SDN BHD.

As the rate of hospital bed utilisation is now at an alarming 95% in Sabah, Datuk Chua suggests that the government allocates a budget to utilise idle hotels as temporary isolation treatment centres. Furthermore, he suggests budgets should be allocated to stock up on personal protective equipment (PPE) and to support struggling restaurants by turning them into quarantine caterers. 

"Through these measures, the government not only supports the hotels and catering industries that have been hit hard by the epidemic but also reduces the burden on the medical system so that more patients can receive timely treatment.”

Datuk Chua believes that the government should strike a balance between the fight against the pandemic and the economy. With that being said, in the Facebook Live titled “Covid-19 in Sabah - How bad is it now?” it was brought to light what funds were raised as well as what the opportunities are for further public assistance. 

Also present at the live show were special guests Dr Timothy William, Infectious Disease Physician at Gleneagles Hospital Kota Kinabalu and Dr Kew Seih Teck, Chairperson of Malaysia Medical Association (MMA) Sabah Branch. 

MMA is the main body for all doctors, general practitioners and medical students in Malaysia and it was announced during the show that SHAREDA contributed RM40,000 in donations to MMA as well as RM28,000 from the developer group of Bay Suites. These donations will aid the MMA with the funds to prevent shortages of essential PPE and services needed to stop the spread of the virus. 

This show was an episode of a monthly live show hosted by Bay Suites. You can watch the full video on their Facebook page and tune in on November 11 for their discussion on high rise condominiums in Kota Kinabalu.