TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The member board of the Indonesia Commercial Tenant Association (Hippindo), Tutum Rahanta, predicted that movie theater business will likely take the longest time to recover after the Covid-19 pandemic. Its recovery must also follow stringent health protocols to ensure the public that the sector is safe to reoperate.

“If [theaters] are reopened, they [the management] must have clear provisions, for example, there should be a limitation on the number of visitors based on the size of the theater’s room,” Tutum told Tempo on Tuesday, May 26.

According to him, the sector cannot immediately operate after the government relaxes the social restrictions on a large scale or PSBB. This contrasts with other sectors such as retails and department stores, which are forecasted to only need one month to recover.

The movie theater is one of the 17 businesses in the tourism sector that are off-limits temporarily due to the coronavirus pandemic. In Jakarta, the closure is mandated in the gubernatorial decree No. 160/SE/2020, which is in effect since the third week of March 2020.

In addition to theaters, Tutum estimated the business related to child’s toys and entertainment will possibly take the longest time to recover as well.”Parents are highly concerned about their child’s health,” he added.

Tutum said each business sector has been drafting a standard operating procedure (SOP) to deal with the new normal after the Covid-19 pandemic and has submitted it to the government for approval.

FRANCISCA CHRISTY ROSANA