SEREMBAN: Anyone entering a factory, including workers, should be made to undergo the RTK-Antigen (RTK-Ag) test for Covid-19, says a Negri Sembilan executive councillor.

       State exco member Datuk Dr Mohamad Rafie Ab Malek said the government should make this testing mandatory for any factory that wishes to continue operating at full capacity during the pandemic.

       “The result of the RTK Antigen test can be obtained within 10 minutes and its efficacy rate is 85%.

       “Although the average market rate for a RTK-Ag test kit is around RM50, the Health Ministry has approved one which costs less than RM20 and this could be lowered further," he said after visiting the Public-Private Partnership Covid-19 Industry Immunisation Programme (Pikas) centre at d’Tempat Country Club here on Friday (July 2).

       Alluding to the industrial sector being the major contributor to Covid-19 cases in the state, he said temperature checks alone were insufficient to check the spread of the virus in industrial areas.

       “We need to do more than that if we want our factories to run at full steam.

       “For this to happen, we must be very sure that everyone entering the premises is free of Covid-19, ” he said.

       As of June 30, 19 of the 45 active clusters in the state were from the industrial sector.

       Dr Mohamad Rafie, who holds the investment, industrialisation, education, entrepreneurship and human capital portfolios in the state, said factory managements must make this small investment so that their plants can function.

       “I call upon the International Trade and Industry Ministry to propose this mandatory testing to the National Security Council and the Health Ministry.

       “This is a must so that we can prevent the virus from spreading and disrupting operations at industrial areas, ” he said.

       He said if the screening is implemented, workers who test positive must then undergo the RT-PCR test, which has a 99.9% accuracy rate, to establish their true health status.

       If the second test returns positive, then the individual must be immediately quarantined or sent to the hospital for treatment.

       Dr Mohamad Rafie said factory managements also need to ensure that standard operating procedures are fully complied with even when testing showed that their workers were free of the coronavirus.

       This included wearing face masks properly, observing physical distancing, washing hands regularly and maintaining hygiene, he added.