Its implementation in the community must be ensured to confirm whether the policies decided at the meeting are really being implemented properlyPurwokerto (ANTARA) - The government has striven to avert a likely spike in COVID-19 cases in June 2021 following heightened community mobility after Eid al-Fitr, Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy stated.
"We have attempted to take precautions. Hence, I visited this place to ensure serious handling of several places in Central Java that can become likely sources of transmission," the minister remarked here on Friday.
Effendy made the statement after attending the peak of the 56th Anniversary of Muhammadiyah University of Purwokerto (UMP) and visiting the UMP Tower Building KH AR Fachruddin recently inaugurated by Muhammadiyah Chairman Haedar Nashir.
The minister stressed on the importance of local governments, whose territories could become sources of COVID-19 transmission, ensuring that policies to stem transmission of the disease in the community are implemented.
"Its implementation in the community must be ensured to confirm whether the policies decided at the meeting are really being implemented properly," he pointed out.
Apart from preventing a spike in COVID-19 cases in June, the government was also sentient of the spread of new variants of the coronavirus disease from the UK, South Africa, and India.
"The new variant that looks dangerous is the variant from India," he remarked.
The government is making all-out efforts to prevent the entry of a new variant of the coronavirus disease originating from India and its likely spread in Indonesia.
"Thank God, there have been no signs of transmission until now. There has been no proliferation, but we must be aware of the sources, especially those currently being handled seriously in Sumatra," he noted.
Effendy stated that the Sumatra region has a crossing route usually traversed by illegal migrant workers, thereby making it difficult for the government to conduct surveillance.
Furthermore, the minister noted that over 500 buses had yet to return to Java from Sumatra.
"Hence, yesterday, several regional police chiefs, especially the regional police chiefs of South Sumatra and Lampung, requested that the interception, examination, and prosecution (of) those returning to cross to Java be extended," he remarked.
Meanwhile, the minister stated that the central government had coordinated with the Cilacap district government in handling the case of the 14 crew members of a Panama-flagged ship that were confirmed to have COVID-19 on arrival at the Tanjung Intan Port, Cilacap.
A total of 14 crew members of the MV Hilma Bulker, who brought refined sugar from India, were known to have contracted COVID-19 while loading and unloading at the Tanjung Intan Port. They are all Filipino citizens.
The crew members, who tested positive for COVID-19, have undergone treatment at the Cilacap Regional Public Hospital, and one of them has died.
According to genome examination conducted by the Health Research and Development Agency of the Health Ministry, the 14 crew members of the MV Hilma Bulker were infected with the new variant of corona virus B1617 from India.
The Cilacap district government has conducted case tracing and examinations of loading and unloading officers at the Tanjung Intan Port as well as health workers and employees of the Cilacap public hospital to prevent the spread of the new variant of COVID-19.
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Translator: Sumarwoto, Katriana
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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