TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan has asserted the capital city of Jakarta and its neighboring cities are still under public mobility restrictions (PPKM) level 2. The government has extended the Java-Bali COVID-19 curbs to January 31, 2022.

“The war against the pandemic in Jakarta has prompted a situation assessment that the province is under PPKM level 3. But in doing the assessment the government has consistently treated Jakarta as part of the agglomeration area of Greater Jakarta. From this viewpoint, the Greater Jakarta area is still under PPKM level 2,” Luhut said in a virtual press conference on Monday, January 24, 2022.

Luhut also called on society to stay alert against the rising spread of Omicron that had reached 1,600 cases daily. He also appealed to people to cut back on outdoor activities.

“This has nothing to do with ranks, we are all the same. Once we contract Omicron, that’s it. Or when we get Delta, that’s what we got,” he said.

Reflecting on the special trajectory of cases in South Africa, Luhut estimated COVID-19 cases would continue to climb and peak in February to March, but explained Omicron transmission carried less risks compared to Delta.

He said this condition was evident in the actual death rates in Jakarta that were lower than South Africa. “We think the higher vaccination figures compared to South Africa are the distinctive factor,” he explained.

He added the bed occupancy ratio (BOR) of hospitals on the islands of Java and Bali was lower than that during the period when the Delta transmission began to climb. “So, it gives us an ample space before it reaches the alarming perimeter of six percent,” Luhut Pandjaitan said.

Read: VP Ma'ruf Amin Calls for PTM Evaluation as Omicron Gallops

FRANCISCA CHRISTY ROSANA