Johor wants Malaysia's federal government to speed up the process of a full opening of Malaysia-Singapore borders, according to The Star. 

The head of government for the state of Johor, Hasni Mohammad, said he met Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin to discuss the matter.

According to Berita Harian, he asked Senior Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob to look into it.

Many Malaysians affected

According to Hasni, more than 35,000 Malaysians working in Singapore have lost their jobs. He added that the pandemic has also affected more than 250,000 Malaysians who used to travel daily between Singapore and Malaysia.

The Star quoted Hasni saying that the border reopening is important as it "contributes 50% of the Customs revenue to the country,".

Uncertain when it will happen

The Singapore-Malaysia border saw its first travellers on Aug. 17 under the Periodic Commuting Arrangement (PCA) and the Reciprocal Green Lane (RGL).

Under these two schemes, Singaporeans and Malaysians can cross the border for business.

Since that announcement, many have been looking forward to the borders being completely reopen.

However, when this will become feasible is still an open question.

On Sep. 6, Malaysia's health minister announced that travellers arriving in Malaysia will no longer be allowed to serve their quarantine at home. This decision came after a Malaysian returning from Singapore tested positive for Covid-19.

On Aug. 28, Muhyiddin announced the extension of the Movement Control Order (MCO) in Malaysia until Dec. 31, 2020. Under the MCO, foreign tourists are not allowed to enter Malaysia.

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Top image by Andrew Koay.