TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo asked regional heads to continue reminding their residents to refrain from traveling to their hometowns, or locally known as mudik, to celebrate this year’s Eid al-Fitr. The Transportation Ministry’s data showed that seven percent of Indonesians kept their plans to make homecoming trips.

“Seven percent is a big number, 18.9 million people,” said the President via his Instagram account @jokowi on Friday, April 30.

Before the Eid homecoming ban, 89 million people, or about 33 percent of the total population, planned to return to their hometowns. As the government issued the ban, the figure dropped to 11 percent or 29 million people, he informed.

The figure kept dropping to seven percent as the central government and regional heads announced the prohibition. “So I ask regional heads to continue to disseminate the policy on homecoming ban and increase the public discipline towards the health protocols,” the state head remarked.

The recent dramatic surge in COVID-19 cases in a number of countries, he went on, should be considered as a reminder for all parties to stay vigilant. “To all regional heads, do not lower your guards, no matter how small the number of active cases in a province, district, or city,” Jokowi underlined.

As widely announced, the Eid homecoming ban will take effect on May 6-17, 2021. COVID-19 Task Force Head Doni Monardo has appealed to residents to turn to virtual meetings to maintain silaturahmi (communal bonds).

Read: Jokowi Urges All to Work Hard to Prevent New Wave of COVID-19

DEWI NURITA