KUCHING: In light of Sarawak entering Phase 2 of the National Recovery Plan (NRP), Bintulu’s standard operating procedures (SOPs) will be adjusted according to local conditions there and certain conditions may be tightened such as restrictions on visitor numbers and dine-in duration at eateries.
“The Bintulu Divisional Disaster Management Committee will outline a version of SOP which is suitable for Bintulu based on the Sarawak Disaster Management Committee’s (SDMC) meeting decisions,” said Bintulu MP Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing in a Facebook post on Tuesday (July 13).
He noted that the announcement on Sarawak entering Phase 2 of the NRP had raised many questions among the public, and thus hoped there would be further clarifications on the matter.
At the same time, he suggested for limits to be imposed on the number of visitors and duration of dining in at eateries or restaurants.
He encouraged the public to take away or pre-order their food in order to shorten the time spent at these premises and to prevent congestion there.
“Meanwhile, enforcement authorities can conduct monitoring through the time at which customers scan their MySejahtera application, in order to ensure that customers comply with the time limit and SOP when visiting restaurants.
“If there are any SOP violations, these should be addressed accordingly.
“Even though the number of cases is declining in Bintulu, a lack of discipline and care in prevention systems can trigger outbreaks again, wasting the prior efforts of all parties.”
Tiong, who is also Progressive Democratic Party president, said he understood that everyone wanted to return to normal life as soon as possible and have all sectors of the economy reopened.
However, he stressed that if Covid-19 spread again due to optimistic attitudes and a lack of vigilance upon entering Phase 2, the people would be more significantly impacted later on with the re-enforcement of movement restrictions and screening measures.
He urged the public to continue to be vigilant in efforts to curb the spread of Covid-19 and also to never take the pandemic lightly.
At the same time, he asserted that the decline in case numbers was not due to a reduction in tests carried out, pointing out that the authorities were still collecting nearly 2,000 samples daily, including those who came to screening centres by appointment.
