Govt mulls easing controls

Jakarta set sights on reducing transportation curbs with caution

THE government is considering loosening the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) put in place to stem the transmission of Covid-19, coordinating human development and culture minister Muhadjir Effendy said, just days after President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo called for caution with regard to easing restrictions.

“We are trying out reducing restrictions on transportation.

“(Based on this), we will see whether we should ease restrictions on other sectors as well,” Muhadjir wrote in a statement on the ministry’s website on Saturday.

Citing economic considerations, the transportation ministry allowed public transportation to resume operation last week by opening air, land and sea travel for select purposes, a move that drew strong criticism from experts.

Following the decision, SoekarnoHatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, was packed with passengers lining up for flights, apparently in violation of physical distancing protocols.

Despite the incident at the airport, Muhadjir said he still thought the easing of travel restrictions had gone well.

He added that such occurrences could be avoided by well-prepared protocols and sufficient personnel.

“The important thing is that we must enforce regulations.

“No protocol will work effectively without enforcement in the field,” he said.

Muhadjir added that relaxing PSBB did not affect the ban on mudik (exodus), which he said remained in effect.

Health experts and business leaders have expressed concerns that loosening restrictions too soon may prolong the outbreak.

Meanwhile, epidemiologists from Airlangga University (Unair) in Surabaya have strongly criticised the East Java provincial administration’s policy to allow mosques in Greater Surabaya to perform congregational prayers, including upcoming Aidilfitri mass prayers, saying the PSBB in the area would be rendered useless by the breach.

“With the letter, the extended PSBB in Greater Surabaya and a new PSBB in Greater Malang have become useless as efforts to flatten the curve,” epidemiologist Windu Purnomo, who leads a team of epidemiologists from Unair’s public health faculty, said on Sunday. — The Jakarta Post/ANN