Jakarta – The Palembang administration officially lifted the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) in Palembang, South Sumatra on Wednesday.
The administration decided not to extend the policy despite a high number of COVID-19 cases in Palembang and South Sumatra.
Based on data from the South Sumatra COVID-19 task force, the total number of COVID-19 patients in Palembang reached 938 on Tuesday. Of the said number, 38 have died, while 592 are still hospitalized.
Palembang Police chief Sr. Com. Anom Setiyadi said PSBB in Palembang would not be extended based on a decision made during a Regional Leadership Communication Forum (Forkopimda).
"Palembang's status has been lowered to orange zone from red zone. So, the task force decided to revoke the restriction, but we will still maintain the health protocols," Anom said on Wednesday as quoted by kompas.com.
Anom stated that the administration had also abolished sanctions for people who violated the rules during the PSBB period.
In the post-PSBB phase, the Indonesian Military and the National Police personnel are only to educate those who violate the health protocols.
He went on to say that implementation of health protocols was to be more strict in traditional markets, where people's mobility was high but awareness about wearing face masks was low. (dpk)