UK Records First Death Case Due To Omicron Variant, PDIP Legislator Reminds Domestic Quarantine Not To Break
JAKARTA - The PDIP faction of the DPR RI reminded the government to tighten quarantine places in Indonesia so as not to concede the danger of transmitting mutations of the COVID-19 virus. This follows the UK's first reported case of death from contracting the Omicron variant.
"(Quarantine, ed) This must be strictly enforced, it cannot be broken! There must be no dispensation whatsoever," said DPR PDIP faction member Rahmad Handoyo to reporters, Wednesday, December 15.
According to the member of Commission IX of the House of Representatives, the quarantine rules for both the time and place must be enforced. This applies to both foreigners and Indonesian citizens who enter Indonesia by air, sea, and land.
The Legislator for the Central Java electoral district emphasized that Indonesia's territorial borders must be strictly guarded. The government must also ensure that quarantine is non-negotiable.
"It must be firmly enforced, so that the officers in the field must really guard it," said Rahmad.
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Rahmad also asked the government to keep a close watch on the Omicron case, which has become an epidemic in the UK and other countries. In addition to the entrance to RI, it also needs to be tightened.
"I think we are getting more vigilant by making the entrances to the state defense even tighter. The air, sea, and land borders of course have to be tighter to be tidier, the more the officers are more active in bringing order or in accordance with the provisions," he explained.
Rahmad also appealed to all Indonesians to remain introspective even though the COVID-19 case in the country is currently sloping.
"To all members of the community, although we are grateful that the current case in Indonesia is good in terms of control, we must not be complacent, we cannot ignore it," said Rahmad.
For information, the UK has recorded one death from the new variant of the Omicron coronavirus. This is the first confirmed death in the world. This news was delivered by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Monday, December 13.
"Unfortunately at least one patient has now been confirmed to have died with Omicron," Johnson told reporters at a vaccination center in London.
But Johnson did not provide details about the identity and death of the victim, other than those who had been diagnosed at the hospital. It was not clear whether the deceased had been vaccinated or had other health problems.
Before the deaths were announced, Britain said as many as 10 people had been hospitalized for exposure to Omicron in various parts of the UK. Their ages ranged from 18 to 85 years and most had received two doses of the vaccination.
Since the first Omicron case was detected on November 27 in the UK, Johnson has imposed stricter restrictions. He also warned that the variant could overcome the immune defenses of the people who were already vaccinated with two doses.
"So I think the idea that this is a lighter version of the virus, I think it's something we need to set (to) one side, and just recognize the accelerated pace through the population," he said.