Not Yet Half Of Babinsa-Bhabinkamtibmas Trained To Be The Tracer Of PPKM Mikro

Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin (ANTARA)

JAKARTA - The government has a target of 80 thousand contact tracer officers (tracer) for COVID-19 cases during the PPKM Mikro period. They are the ranks of Babinsa (Village Guidance Officer) and Bhabinkamtibmas (Community Police Officer).

However, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin admitted that currently, the number of tracer cases has not reached half of the target, which includes seven provinces in Java and Bali that implement PPKM Mikro.

"We have conducted training for 22,300 Babinsa in 7 provinces, for Bhabinkamtibmas around 14,000 in 7 provinces," Budi said in a press conference for the extension of the PPKM Mikro, Monday, March 8.

In carrying out his duties, Budi said that case tracers during the PPKM Mikro had the task of tracking 15 to 30 close contacts of each COVID-19 case in their respective regions.

"We will track it within 72 hours, we have decided to use Babinsa and Babinkamtibmas under the coordination of the Community Health Center, in order to pursue this target," said Budi.

Previously, the government through the Chairperson of the Committee for Handling COVID-19 and National Economic Recovery (KPC-PEN), Airlangga Hartarto, decided to extend the micro-scale PPKM from 9 to 22 March 2021.

Airlangga said that the implementation of volume III of the PPKM Mikro will be re-applied in the Java and Bali Islands and there are three additional areas.

"We have extended our PPKM Mikro, where there is an expansion in the areas for PPKM Mikro, such as East Kalimantan, South Sulawesi, and North Sumatra," said Airlangga.

Airlangga said that the coverage of the PPKM Mikro was expanded due to the consideration of a significant increase in COVID-19 cases in the 3 provinces.

According to him, the restrictions on activities in PPKM Mikro volume 3 are the same as in the previous period, such as offices implementing 50 percent work from home (WFH), teaching and learning activities to be carried out online, shopping centers or malls operating until 09.00 p.m with health protocols.

Then, restaurants are allowed to serve on-site meals or dine-in with a maximum capacity of 50 percent, and delivery services are allowed.

Meanwhile, a maximum of 50 percent of places of worship operate with health protocols, construction activities operate 100 percent with health protocols, and the essential sector operates 100 percent also with health protocols.

"The policy of limiting activities in the context of implementing the PPKM Mikro is all the same, except for public facilities that have begun to be allowed to open with a maximum capacity of 50 percent with regulation by the Regional Government," he explained.