KUCHING: While the Anglican churches in Sarawak and Brunei have been eagerly waiting for non-Muslim houses of worship to be allowed to operate again, they will continue to be cautious and vigilant when they do reopen.
In stating this, Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Sarawak and Brunei Right Reverend Datuk Danald Jute said there would be no complacency as Covid-19 was still around.
He said all the standard operating procedures (SOPs) will be strictly observed and adhered to, as have been done since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The Anglican churches welcome the announcement made by the federal government and the State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) on the reopening of churches with effect from June 20.
“Our priority is to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all church goers. All being well, Anglican churches will reopen on Sunday, June 28,” he said when contacted on Tuesday.
Danald said the Anglican churches believe that by working together with the SDMC, the Unit For Other Religions (Unifor), and the general public, the presence of Covid-19 in Sarawak can be contained and fully eradicated.
“We are pleased that the ‘new norm’ of social distancing of at least one metre between individuals and other hygiene protocols are slowly becoming the accepted norm.
“The priests and other leaders of the churches have been briefed and the general congregations have been made aware of how and why we need to observe all these protocols,” he assured.
He added that most Anglican churches have or are in final stage of mapping out the seating arrangements, setting up counters for temperature screening, and counters for writing out personal information for contact tracing.
“These are done along with the training of volunteers who will assist with sanitisation of church pews before and after church services as well as washrooms,” he stated.
