Tightened checks will also be imposed on the Ketapang-Gilimanuk sea route connecting Ketapang in Banyuwangi, East Java, and Gilimanuk in Bali from 14 to 20 July.
By
kompas team
·5 minutes read
The exit points of toll roads in Central Java and the Ketapang-Gilimanuk sea route are to be placed under tight surveillance to reduce human mobility. However, people are continuing to try to get around it.
JAKARTA, KOMPAS — Enforcement of the emergency public activity restrictions (PPKM Darurat) is to be tightened at a total of 27 exits on toll roads in Central Java, which are to be closed on 16-22 July, excepting the vehicles of critical and essential businesses.
Tightened checks will also be imposed on the Ketapang-Gilimanuk sea route connecting Ketapang in Banyuwangi, East Java, and Gilimanuk in Bali from 14 to 20 July.
However, the efforts to reduce Covid-19 transmission are still seen to be less than optimal, with recalcitrant residents stubbornly trying to get around the new emergency measures. Screening on Tuesday (13/7/2021) at the Lubuk Buaya checkpoint in Padang, West Sumatra, for example, appeared to be effective only during the inspection visit of Padang Mayor Hendri Septa and his entourage.
In Tegal, Central Java, several people were seen offering their services to help motorcyclists bypass a 70-high concrete barrier installed at the end of Langon Bridge, connecting Tegal municipality and Tegal regency.
The surge in the nation’s Covid-19 caseload is continuing with 47,899 new cases reported on Tuesday (13/7). The figure was the highest daily increase recorded during Indonesia’s coronavirus epidemic. The number of deaths increased by 864.
Windhu Purnomo, an epidemiologist from Airlangga University in Surabaya, East Java, said the government must take appropriate and effective measures to overcome the situation.
Closure
Central Java Police chief Insp. Gen. Ahmad Luthfi said at Semarang City Hall on Tuesday (13/7) that all toll road exits in Central Java would be closed on 16-22 July. Tight screening would also be imposed at 224 checkpoints in the province to curb human mobility.
Under the measures, motorized vehicles from outside Central Java are prohibited from entering the province. Residents of Central Java have also been asked to stay at home. The measures do not apply to vehicles of essential and critical businesses, as regulated in Home Minister Instruction No. 18/2021 on the second amendment to Home Minister Instruction No. 15/2021 on the Covid-19 PPKM Darurat in Java and Bali.
The amended instruction lists as essential sectors the finance, capital market, and information and communication technology, as well as non-quarantine hotels and export-oriented industries.
Meanwhile, the critical sectors are health, public security and order, disaster management, energy, and logistics. In addition, the list includes transportation and distribution, especially for basic needs, food and beverages, fertilizers and petrochemicals, as well as cement and building materials. This category is related to national vital objects, national strategic projects, construction, and basic utilities.
Danang Parikesit, head of the toll road regulatory agency at the Public Works and Housing Ministry, said the agency was leaving supervision of the public mobility restrictions on toll roads during the PPKM Darurat to the police.
West Indonesia Time at Ketapang Port and between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m. Central Indonesia Time at Gilimanuk Port.
Land transportation director general Budi Setiyadi said the port authorities overseeing the Ketapang-Gilimanuk sea route would ban pedestrians and passenger vehicles from embarking sea vessels on 14-20 July. The ban would apply from 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. West Indonesia Time at Ketapang Port and between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m. Central Indonesia Time at Gilimanuk Port.
Not optimal
As further measures were being planned to curb the spread of Covid-19, traffic screenings have appeared to be nonoptimal at several checkpoints.
In Padang, West Sumatra, a blockade was installed at the Lubuk Buaya checkpoint on Tuesday only during the on-site inspection visit of Padang Mayor Hendri Septa and his entourage. The mayor arrived at the checkpoint at around 10 a.m. and concluded his visit 30 minutes later.
After the mayor\'s departure, the on-duty officers abandoned the checkpoint. Some rested in and around a tent while others were helping to install electrical devices at the tent. Vehicles headed from Padang Pariaman passed through the checkpoint without being screened. Kompas monitored this loose surveillance until 11 a.m.
When confronted with this observation, Koto Tangah Police chief Comm. Indra Junaidi said he would request a report from the checkpoint.
Meanwhile, the Tegal City Police installed a reinforced concrete barrier standing at heights of up to 1.4 meters around Langon Bridge to prevent access. EARlier, the police had closed the bridge using a water barrier. But because the local residents often moved the barrier, the police installed a concrete barrier around 70 cm tall. The residents were still able to get around this barrier, so the police installed a taller, reinforced barrier.
Diponegoro Military Base commander Maj. Gen. Rudianto said the Indonesian Military (TNI), along with the National Police, were ready to help distribute medicines and basic goods for the relief program to be launched by President Joko Widodo.
"Today, we are coordinating with the [Semarang] regency government so they can be distributed to villages as planned," he said. (LKT/OSA/NIA/DIT/BRO/ETA/XTI/JUM/ESA/IDO/JOL/JAL/FLO)