KUCHING: It is wise to scale down the Chinese New Year (CNY) celebration this year in view of the current Covid-19 situation, said Association of the Boards of Management of Aided Chinese Primary Schools in Kuching, Samarahan and Serian Divisions president Jonathan Chai.
Referring to the CNY standard operating procedure (SOP) recently released by the Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC), he said it was understandable that such restrictions and regulations had to be put in place under such extraordinary circumstances.
“Stricter SOP is necessary to curb the rising number of positive Covid-19 cases even though it would dampen the joyous mood of celebrating this festival,” he said when contacted today (Jan 16).
He believed the main objective of celebrating CNY is to preserve the tradition of reunion among family members, especially for those who have been out of town for work or study during the year.
“But with the convenience derived from the breakthrough of technology, many online devices enable us to communicate with each other with full video display nowadays,” he noted.
Chai, who is also Kuching Chinese General Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCGCCI) secretary-general, hoped everyone would play their part by adhering to the SOP.
“Looking after ourselves well would also be a great service to our community,” he said.
On Friday (Jan 15), SDMC released the SOP for the upcoming CNY celebration, including a list of prohibited activities such as lion dance performances, open houses, house visiting, and so on.
