VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Head of the National Civil Service Agency (BKN), Bima Haria Wibisana (right), accompanied by head of the East Java Province Human Resources Development Agency, Aries Agung Paewai, on Saturday (November 27, 2021). (ANTARA PHOTO/Fiqih Arfani/rst) - 

Head of the National Civil Service Agency (BKN) Bima Haria Wibisana has urged all state civil servants (ASN) to cancel their collective leave during the approaching Christmas and New Year holidays.

"For ASN who have long intended to take year-end leave for vacation or homecoming, please immediately cancel it," he said at the East Java Province Human Resources Development Agency (BPSDM) Building on Saturday.

A regulation has been issued by the Minister for Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform, Tjahjo Kumolo, regarding the ban on collective leave at the end of this year, he noted.

The policy is outlined in the Circular Letter of the Minister for Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Number 26 of 2021 concerning Restrictions on Traveling Outside the Region and/or Leave for ASN Employees During the 2021 Christmas and New Year 2022 Period amid the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.

The regulation has been issued as a follow-up to the Instruction of the Minister of Home Affairs Number 62 of 2021 regarding the Prevention and Control of COVID-19 during the 2021 Christmas and 2022 New Year, Wibisana informed.

The circular from the Minister for Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Number 13 of 2021 also forbids ASN from taking leave and traveling outside the region in the same week as a national holiday, starting December 20, 2021, and also before and after the period, he noted.

The prohibition does not apply to ASN on maternity leave and sick leave, he said.

"Of course, there are dispensations in emergencies, such as illness or maternity leave," he informed.

He also said that civil servants who continue to take leave and travel outside the city will face sanctions.

"If they are being reckless and then come home being infected with COVID-19, causing a cluster in their neighborhood, then this is a serious violation because it endangers the public. The sanctions will be very heavy for them," Wibisana warned.

He asked ASN to be patient and stay vigilant amid the sloping cases of COVID-19 in Indonesia.

"Please be patient. There is no need to travel during the year-end holidays. Just stay at home, for the sake of everyone," he added//ANT