VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

National Police Chief General Listyo Sigit Prabowo reviews Benoa Port, Bali Province, on January 15, 2022. (ANTARA/HO-Public Relations Division of Indonesian National Police/uyu) - 

National Police Chief General Listyo Sigit Prabowo urged the Bali Regional Leadership Coordination Forum (Forkopimda) to strengthen the implementation of health protocols and quarantine for overseas travelers to thwart the spread of Omicron.

"We just reviewed the arrival steps set for ship crew members (ABK) and tourists at Benoa Port. We wanted to assess the implementation of health inspection at the entry points for overseas travelers,” Prabowo stated after visiting Benoa Port, Bali Province, on Saturday.

The Police chief remarked that the arrival steps set by the port’s officers comprised an antigen swab test on the ship's travelers.

Furthermore, they are necessitated to conduct PCR tests and health checks in a specially prepared room before being taken to a referral hospital or a quarantine place readied by the Bali provincial government.

To strengthen supervision and to prevent the likelihood of violation of quarantine requirement, the national police chief called on all overseas travelers to install the Presisi Quarantine Monitoring app on their smartphones.

The police also deployed several officers to monitor the quarantined people, he noted.

“If someone gets out of the isolation place before the determined period, we will send a notification through the app, so that the person can immediately be quested and brought back to the quarantine site," he explained.

According to his review at the port, Prabowo acknowledged that health protocols were implemented well at Benoa Port, albeit some adjustments and improvements were still required.

Prabowo remarked that currently, cases of Omicron transmission in Indonesia largely constituted imported cases involving international travelers, who enter the country via the Soekarno-Hatta Airport, Banten Province.

Hence, he emphasized the importance of implementing strict health protocols and quarantine procedures at Benoa Harbor as one of the entry points for the travelers.

On the same occasion, Prabowo lauded the hard work of Bali Forkopimda in ensuring that the isolation process for travelers ran well.

The national police chief noted that the steps were taken to protect the public from being exposed to the virus.

"The attempts require synergy and solidity from all stakeholders. In addition, the community must remain vigilant. Although they have been vaccinated twice, they must continue to follow the health protocols. The government has also provided booster vaccinations,” he added//ANT