Increased mobility in residential areas can be seen from Google’s Community Mobility Report.
By
kompas team
·5 minutes read
Kompas/Wawan H Prabowo
The atmosphere on the Mohamed bin Zayed (MBZ) Elevated Toll Road in Bekasi City, West Java, which was closed using a plastic barrier, on Friday (16/7/2021). To support the implementation of emergency Community Activity Blocking (PPKM) ahead of Eid al-Adha, PT Jasamarga Cikampek Flyover (JJC) closed the MBZ Elevated Toll Road from that day until Thursday (22/7).
The movement of people in residential areas is seeing a rising trend, despite the implementation of the emergency public activity restrictions (PPKM Darurat). Meanwhile, as many as 3,400 people have been unable to get hospital beds in Jakarta due to the continuing surge in new Covod-19 cases.
JAKARTA, KOMPAS— The movement of people in residential areas is rising, despite the government’s move to implement the emergency public activity restrictions (PPKM Darurat). This condition is very worrying, because it can spur on the transmission of Covid-19.
Increased mobility in residential areas can be seen from Google’s Community Mobility Report. Compared to the report’s data on 2 July 2021, the day before the PPKM Darurat was implemented on 3 July, there has been a decline in public transportation use and traffic flow to shopping malls, recreation centers and offices. However, there has been an increase in public activities in residential areas.
This phenomenon has occurred in all provinces on Java and Bali, which fall under the PPKM Darurat, with the largest increase of 21 percent recorded in Jakarta and the smallest increase of 13 percent recorded in East Java.
National Covid-19 task force spokesman Wiku Bakti Bawono Adisasmito said in Jakarta on Friday (16/7/2021) that the task forces at the subdistrict and village levels needed to be strengthened to curb community mobility in residential areas.
Subdistrict task forces include local administrations, village supervisory officers (Babinsa) and the National Police’s public safety and order unit (Bhabinkamtibmas), as well as community and religious leaders and volunteers.
"Everyone must work together to solve this problem," said Wiku.
Still climbing
Gadjah Mada University epidemiologist Riris Andono Ahmad said that if the PPKM Darurat were implemented in an effective manner, the daily tally of new Covid-19 cases would start to decline in the second week after implementation.
However, the number of Covid-19 cases has continued to increase. On Friday, the daily tally increased by 54,000 new cases and 1,205 deaths. The largest increase in daily cases occurred in Jakarta with 12,415 cases.
Kompas/Heru Sri Kumoro
DKI Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan Chief Editor of Kompas Daily Sutta Dharmasaputra inspects the implementation of the Covid-19 vaccination at Bentara Budaya Jakarta, Jakarta, Monday (28/6/2021).
According to Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan, the ongoing surge in new Covid-19 cases led to at least 3,400 sick people unable to find beds at hospitals in Jakarta. As many as 1,900 people were waiting in hospital emergency rooms, while 1,400 other people were in line outside the emergency rooms. Many people were waiting for beds in hospital corridors, at community health centers (Puskesmas), or at home. The condition could lead to a potential increase in the number of Covid-19 deaths outside health facilities.
Regarding this matter, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said the ministry had prepared around 2,000 additional beds for Covid-19 patients in Jakarta. They included 900 beds in the isolation ward and 100 beds in the intensive care unit (ICU) at the Pondok Gede haj dormitory emergency hospital, 300 beds at Dr. Cipto Mangunkusumo National Central General Hospital, and 300-500 beds at Pertamina Central Hospital.
Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas said that 27 out of the 31 existing haj dormitories in Indonesia had been readied to handle Covid-19 patients. The remaining four haj dormitories were still being converted to facilitate Covid-19 patients e, he said.
Yaqut also appealed to the public not to travel to their hometowns for Idul Adha (Day of Sacrifice).
"The Religious Affairs Ministry is coordinating with Islamic organizations, such as NU [Nahdlatul Ulama], Muhammadiyah, and MUI [Indonesian Ulema Council], to urge the public not to go on mudik (exodus) to their hometowns during Idul Adha. Mudik can lead to the spread of Covid-19," he said.
Toll road barricades
Starting on Friday, traffic restrictions have been implemented at 27 toll road exits in Central Java. Hundreds of vehicles at the Pejagan-Pemalang toll road exit in Adiwerna district, Tegal regency were turned back because the drivers and passengers did not have the required travel documents to enter the area. Many drivers and passengers were unable to show the required travel documents, such as worker registration certificates, loading and unloading documents for freight vehicles, vaccination cards and negative antigen test results.
“On Friday, from around midnight until 11 a.m., we asked more than 100 vehicles to turn around. They were mostly private vehicles or public transportation vehicles,” said Adj. Commissioner Dwi Himawan Chandra, the head of the Tegal Police’s traffic unit.
KOMPAS/P RADITYA MAHENDRA YASA
Residents queue to undergo a Covid-19 rapid test after they were stopped at the Kalikangkung toll gate, Semarang City, Central Java, on Sunday (16/5/2021).
Although information about the traffic restrictions had been disseminated since Tuesday (13/7), many people were still unaware of the restrictions that are to last until July 22. Yadi (31), a truck driver from Jakarta, for example, did not know that the tollgates in Central Java were closed.
A number of migrants who were trying to return to their hometowns in Tegal were also affected. Satria (19), for example, had to walk 2 kilometers to the Adiwerna toll road exit because the bus dropped him off on the toll road.
“The bus driver didn\'t want to take me to the toll road exit. He said he was afraid of being questioned by the police,” said Satria, who had just returned from Denpasar, Bali.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the East Java office of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), Adik Dwi Putranto, said the traffic restrictions imposed as part of the PPKM Darurat had caused many problems. A number of businessmen had complained that trucks transporting essential goods had been affected.
"This issue needs to be evaluated by officials and the government," said Adik.
/https%3A%2F%2Fkompas.id%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2021%2F05%2F20210516WEN4_1621142504.jpg){kind=logo}
