The UCSI Poll Research Centre recently conducted a survey titled, “How are you coping with the Movement Control Order (MCO) 2.0?”, and of course, the purpose of the study speaks for itself.
The survey was conducted among 951 people from Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Johor, and Penang, in which 74.8% of the respondents stated that they found the MCO 2.0 to be challenging but manageable, while 17.8% of the respondents found it to be no problem at all, and 7.5% of the respondents were not able to cope with it.
When further asked about the ability to cope if the MCO 2.0 is extended, 74.3% of the respondents felt it will be challenging but manageable, 12.2% of the respondents said it would no problem at all, and 13.5% of the respondents indicated that they will not be able to cope with it.
As for the types of challenges faced over the MCO, respondents were given categories to choose from and these were the results:
- Financial (61.4%)
- Social interaction (51.6%)
- Mental health (49.2%)
- Working (48.9%)
- Purchase of groceries/necessities (24.5%)
In terms of location, respondents living in urban areas are coping with the MCO 2.0 better than the respondents living in semi-urban and rural areas based on the selected survey states.
UCSI Poll Research Centre said that the public showed a higher adaption to the MCO 2.0, especially in the activities such as purchasing groceries/necessities and working as the industries and merchants have a more mature mechanism in managing the modes of working and retailing compared to the previous MCO.
Due to the pandemic, a majority of the people were affected in terms of their income. Additionally, financial activities have also become the main challenge for most people as many activities came to a halt to break the COVID-19 chain.
One of the reasons for the difference in coping with the MCO 2.0 in the staying areas may be due to the lack of infrastructure such as internet connectivity and supply chain. This is why people from the semi-urban and rural areas find it more challenging to cope with the MCO2.0.
It’s important to note that these results cannot be attributed to views of the whole country, as the survey was conducted among respondents only in densely populated states.
Stay safe, everyone!
