Jakarta – The government has officially decided to impose Emergency PPKM or restrictions to community activities starting from July 3 to July 20, 2021. The emergency restrictions is a decisive step that has been taken in light of the surge in positive cases over the past week as well as bed occupancy rates that have exceeded exponentially since the last spike in cases, namely during the Christmas holidays and New Year 2020.

This Emergency PPKM will be applied to all districts/cities in the Java and Bali islands and are included in the COVID-19 control indicators within the area. Moreover, as directed by the President, this policy is in accordance with recent COVID-19 developments, especially the newer variants that have appeared in several countries.

"It must be noted that changes in the indicators for determining the implementation of Emergency PPKM will be carried out during this period and further discussions to come in the future. This decision has accommodated input from various elements, including the ranks of Ministries/Agencies, academics, and professional units, so it is hoped that the resulting treatment can be conclusive,” explained Expert Team Coordinator and Covid-19 Management Task Force Spokesperson, Prof. Wiku Adisasmito.

Emergency PPKM implementation will be in accordance with WHO 4-level zonation control, while Micro PPKM implementation will still refer to RT zoning calculations. In principle, these two zoning grounds are adapted to current conditions and their implementation has been submitted to their respective regional governments to prevent confusion during implementation.

In addition, while the Emergency PPKM is imposed, Micro PPKM will continue to be implemented at the Village/Kelurahan level in Java Island according to the latest Instruction of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Regency/City PPKM and Micro PPKM outside Java and Bali will also still refer to the same regulation. It is hoped that this policy will decrease the number of daily cases to <10,000 cases per day nationally.

In further detail, this Emergency PPKM regulates the activities of all sectors in society, some of which are essential, such as finance, information and communication technology, non-quarantine Covid-19 hotels and the export industry, wherein a 50% WFH and 50% WFO system will be carried out. Meanwhile, a 100% WFH or work from home entirely policy will be mandated for non-essential sectors

Teaching and learning activities in all educational units will be carried out online. Shopping activities at supermarkets and traditional markets can operate till a maximum of 20:00 local time with a maximum visitor capacity of 50%, while shopping centers or malls will be temporarily closed. Meanwhile, pharmaceutical sector activities such as pharmacies and drug stores can operate 24 hours.

In addition, only long-distance domestic travel such as by plane, bus, and train, travellers are obligated to display evidence of their first vaccination card, a negative result of COVID-19 through PCR with a maximum of 2 days and/or Rapid Antigen a maximum of 1 day before departure.

With regards to the implementation of this Emergency PPKM, the Task Force urges the community to carry out their activities wisely. “Especially when planning to do activities outside home. It is better to stay at home if there is no urgent need to do activities outside,” explained Wiku.

The community is also urged to take into account the risk of transmission from the point of departure to the destination and also from the destination to their point of return as well as the vulnerability of members leaving the house. If lengthy activities are carried out in a crowded and enclosed place, the risk of transmission will be even greater.

With the tightening of community activities, it is hoped that people will not panic. This effort is a form of our sacrifice to ensure control over COVID-19 so as to not result in a greater crisis. In principle, community activities will not die completely, only more controlled and also well prepared through the supply of social assistance support that will continue its distribution.

“It is important to remember that the success of this program is largely determined by the synergy and collaboration between the government and elements of society. In the implementation of this Emergency PPKM, meetings between Forkopimda will also be strengthened with layered implementation to ensure transparency at the community level," concluded Wiku.

***

[STPC19/HER/VJY]