"The transmission is very high and Indonesia will definitely experience this. If the previous peak of cases hit 57 thousand, in the future, we need to be more careful. In some other countries, (the peak of cases due to the Omicron variant) can be three to six times compared to the peak of cases due to Delta variant," he noted at an online press conference on Monday.
He said that the number of cases in the United States reached 800 thousand per day during the Omicron outbreak compared to 250 thousand cases per day during the Delta outbreak. In France, the number of cases reached 360 thousand per day during the Omicron outbreak, which was more than the 60 thousand cases per day recorded during the Delta outbreak, he added.
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"Countries similar to us, Brazil, are now also still reporting an increase of around 190 thousand cases per day compared to 80 thousand cases per day due to the Delta variant. India is also now reporting 310 thousand cases per day compared to 380 thousand cases per day earlier. Likewise, Japan, which is reporting 65 thousand cases per day compared to 25 thousand cases per day due to the Delta variant," he informed.
Minister Sadikin estimated that Omicron cases will peak at the end of February 2022.
"We still don't know how many peak cases in Indonesia will reach, but we think the peak cases will occur at the end of February. However, we have said that in other countries, the peak cases can be three to six times higher than the peak cases caused by the Delta variant," he said.
To prevent a spike in cases, the minister asked the public to limit mobility and always be careful so as to avoid exposure to COVID-19.
"I urge all of you to be careful. Limit your mobility and avoid crowds to reduce the potential for transmission," he advised.
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Translator: Katriana
Editor: Suharto
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