KOTA KINABALU: The Malaysian Association of Wellness and Spa is appealing to the government to allow the wellness, spa and reflexology centres to reopen in October, which is when Phase Three of the National Recovery Plan (NRP) is slated to start.

       Its president Dorothea Justin Moduying felt they had been sidelined as barbershops, hair salons and beauty centres had been permitted to operate in states under Phase Two of the NRP.

       In a statement here, she argued that the complementary traditional medicine sector had also been allowed to operate, where therapeutic, chiropractic and physiotherapy treatments involved physical touch with the same risks as the spa industry.

       "The spa sector had been put in the negative list of the movement control order 3.0 and until now, many of our members had decided to quit the business.

       "As the government only planned to allow this sector to reopen in Phase Four of the NRP, our 433 members who are still struggling to maintain the business, will end up closing their businesses too.

       "The operators with premises within a hotel, shopping mall and commercial lots will not be able to sustain the rental debt and workers’ salary, and while we appreciate the moratorium (subsidised wages) and financial assistance given by the government and private banks, not every member benefited from this," she said on Wednesday (Sept 15).

       Despite repeated petitions to the government and it was proven that no clusters had been linked with the spa sector even though the perception that it was an industry with high risk of transmission, the operators had still not been treated fairly compared to others in the ‘wellbeing and touch’ category.

       "Our industry’s activities carry the same risks as those providing hair, beauty, nail, physiotherapy and chiropractic services.

       "We are well aware of the contagion risks, and have taken proactive actions to implement measures to protect the health of our community.

       "This includes following all standard operating procedures issued by the state and federal governments, mandating regular PCR tests for our employees on our own funds, and investing in PPE gear, sanitisers and hygiene equipment on our business premises.

       "Our staff and therapists are fully vaccinated, ready to open.

       "The situation is now very dire and our industry is on the brink of collapse. Wwe cannot survive to reopen in Phase Four,” she stressed.