Nay Pyi Taw, April 8
The second coordination meeting to prevent COVID-19 global pandemic, and provide treatment and other necessities for people, Tatmadaw members and families was held at the meeting hall at the Office of the Commander-in-Chief (Army) this afternoon in Nay Pyi Taw, under the leadership of Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.
Present at the meeting were Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Commander-in-Chief (Army) Vice-Senior General Soe Win, Union Minister for Defence Lt-Gen Sein Win, Chief of the General Staff (Army, Navy and Air) General Mya Tun Oo, Commander-in-Chief (Navy) Admiral Tin Aung San, Commander-in-Chief (Air) General Maung Maung Kyaw and senior military officers.
In his keynote address, Senior General said arrangements should be made to send the medicines and equipment bought with the donations made by officers and other ranks and staff of Tatmadaw (Army, Navy and Air) for COVID-19 prevention, containment and treatment to the most possible degree soonest to all necessary places including military hospitals and people’s hospitals. He spoke of the need to present the progress of work and requirements.
The participants presented the arrangements to receive test kits to test the COVID-19 suspected patients and the lab equipment to confirm the COVID-19 cases, admission of quarantined persons and food and accommodation programs, admission and treatment of emergency patients and confirmed cases at the military hospitals and other buildings, undertakings to get necessary protective gear, distribution of hospital equipment donated by well-wishers to the required places soonest, arranging of standby planes, helicopters, cars and trains, COVID-19 infection in neighbouring countries and ASEAN member states, possible conditions of Myanmar in the near future, preparations for battalion-and unitwise provision of internal and external medical protection, facts on available nutritious food including vegetables for improving the immune system of grassroots, anti-smoking activities, provision of masks manu-factured by Tatmadaw Garment Factory (Mingaladon) and Tatmadaw Textile Factory (Meiktila) for Tatmadaw members and families,
provision of protective equipment manufactured by Tatmadaw Garment Factory (Mingaladon) for Tatmadaw members spraying disinfectants, possibilities to provide the people with virus protection and hospital equipment manufactured by Defence Services industries, necessary administration and logistics projects and the issuance, observance and implementation of orders and directives. The Senior General looked into the requirements and made coordinated arrangements.
In his concluding remark, the Senior General stressed the need to extensively distribute educative programmes on COVID-19 preventive, control and treatment measures for people, Tatmadaw members and their families through radio, TV and online media. He said in giving healthcare services, it is necessary to keep the rooms light, airy and clean. Under the current situation, frugality is most important. Despite the need for eating healthy foods, unnecessary waste must be avoided while electricity and water must also be saved. Medicines and hospital equipment bought with the donated money must be systematically distributed. Plans must be made to arrange necessary meals for needy retirees and those with low pensions. Such assistance also needs to be provided for the prerequisites for religious members such as monks and nuns and homes for the aged and orphanages opened by other religious organizations.
In the Tatmadaw, there has not been any COVID-19 infected person. There are only one Tatmadaw member and two dependent family members in hospital isolation, 14 members and 14 dependent family members in hospital quarantine, 161 members and 88 dependent family members in home quarantine and 44 members and 55 dependent family members in facility quarantine. Till 8 April, there have been 134 people at Yangon Transit Centre and 284 people at Nay Pyi Taw Transit Centre totalling 418 in facility quarantine. All of them are now in good health.
