TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Jakarta Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) Head Arifin has rebuffed allegations that the city has relaxed its monitoring of the implementation of health protocols during the transitional large-scale social restrictions or PSBB.

“We don’t loosen the control. It is still the same as in the PSBB,” said Arifin to Tempo on Friday, July 3.

Arifin said the law enforcement against PSBB violations remained stringent given the high number of people who were sanctioned during the transition period to the new normal era.

From June 5 to July 2, Satpol PP imposed sanctions on 15,116 people who did not wear face masks. Of which, 1,344 people were fined, while the rest were charged with social works. The total fine reached Rp241,960,000.

Meanwhile, the total number of protocol violators during the first PSBB was recorded at 1,803, and 3,865 in the second phase.

In the first phase of the restriction, the local government did not impose any sanctions. “So the law enforcement in this transition is three-fold more stringent. It is not true that the monitoring is loosened.”

According to Arifin, the city recorded many violations during the transition period since the government relaxed its policies related to economic and social sectors with the rule of 50 percent capacity. This means more Jakartans left their houses in this period compared to the previous one.

“Some people do not comply with the health protocols, and we sanction them. So we don't just let them go unpunished," he said.

Read: Jakarta Bans Eid al-Adha Qurban in COVID-19 Red Zones

IMAM HAMDI