TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia’s number of Omicron cases continues to surge. The Health Ministry recorded 414 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus variant as of Saturday, Jan. 8. Of which, 31 cases were local transmission.

The ministry’s spokesperson Siti Nadia Tarmizi encouraged the public not to travel abroad. “Most of the Omicron cases are from international travelers, so people are expected to postpone [plans] of overseas travel,” said Nadia in a written statement in Jakarta, Sunday, Jan. 9.

Most of the variant cases were found in travelers from Turkey and Saudi Arabia. Fully vaccinated people could still be exposed to the variant of concern.

“We must be vigilant, not to get infected. We must be disciplined in applying the health protocols even though we have been vaccinated. Don’t get infected and infect others,” she underlined.

According to her, Omicron spreads faster than the Delta variant. In Indonesia, cases of the new virus variant continued to increase since it was confirmed on Dec. 16, 2021.

The ministry also encouraged regions to strengthen 3T (Testing, Tracing, Treatment), actively monitor potential infection clusters, and immediately report and coordinate with the center if confirmed cases of Omicron are found.

“We must not be careless. Do not let the COVID-19 third wave occur in Indonesia. Do not let what happened in India also happen in Indonesia, where there was a hike in Omicron cases from 6,000 to 90,000 in the last 10 days. We must prevent this [from happening],” said Nadia.

Read: Govt Urged to Focus on Healthcare System over Omicron Spread Containment

ANTARA