Walkot Ibnu Sina Protests To Airlangga And Central, COVID Indicators Decline But PPKM Banjarmasin Is At Level 4

Mayor of Banjarmasin H Ibn Sina. (ANTARA/Public Relations of Banjarmasin City Government)

BANJARMASIN - Mayor of Banjarmasin H Ibnu Sina protested the central government's decision to extend the implementation of Level 4 Community Activity Restrictions (PPKM) in his area until October 18, 2021.

In fact, the COVID-19 transmission indicator in Banjarmasin City has dropped after implementing PPKM Level 4 for 10 weeks, from July 26 to October 4, 2021. The PPKM level should have been lowered.

He also quoted the chairman of the Committee for Handling COVID-19 and National Economic Recovery, Airlangga Hartarto, who stated that Banjarmasin City had PPKM Level 2 status.

"Four days ago, the Minister said that Banjarmasin was at Level 2, a maximum of Level 3," he said in Banjarmasin as reported by Antara, Tuesday, October 5.

He admitted that he was surprised to learn that the City of Banjarmasin had to run PPKM Level 4 from 5 to 18 October 2021 along with five other regencies and cities outside Java and Bali.

"It's a pity for our community if we continue to Level 4. Where do we want to fly to where we have to spend more. The point is that I protest with the Minister," said Ibnu Sina.

According to him, the City of Banjarmasin has met the requirements to drop the PPKM level with a COVID-19 vaccination coverage of more than 50 percent and an occupancy rate of beds for COVID-19 patients in hospitals of around four percent.

"The BOR indicator is already at Level 1," he said, referring to the hospital bed occupancy rate (BOR).

In addition, he said, the percentage of COVID-19 patients undergoing treatment within a week had fallen to 2.5 percent per 100,000 population and examinations to detect COVID-19 transmission had reached 209 percent of the target.