KUCHING: The Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) Sarawak will be strictly enforcing the travel restrictions effective tomorrow (Aug 1), said Sarawak deputy police commissioner Datuk Dev Kumar.
The move was made following the detection of new Covid-19 cases in several districts in the state.
Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) has decided to limit public movements between Zone 1 (red and yellow districts) and Zone 2 (green districts) from Aug 1 to 14.
Dev said police had been tasked to enforce between these two zones. Currently, Zone 1 covers Kuching, Samarahan and Serian.
“For this purpose, PDRM Sarawak will be setting up roadblocks in Simunjan and Sri Aman from 12.01am tomorrow (Aug 1). The general public are not allowed to move from Zone 1 to Zone 2 and vice versa in the said period.
“For example, travelling between Kuching, Padawan, Kota Samarahan, Simunjan, Serian, Bau and Lundu districts is allowed without the need for a police permit.
“However, travelling from Simunjan to Sri Aman via Triso ferry is not allowed. Travelling from Simunjan to Sri Aman via Jalan Serian-Sri Aman is also not allowed,” he said in a statement.
Dev explained that exceptions allowed by SDMC were for those needing to travel for official duties, working as part of the essential services, deaths of immediate family members, those whose family members were seriously ill and because of health screening requirements.
Government employees who are on official duties must present letters of confirmation from their department heads. Essential service employees are also required to show confirmation letters from their companies or employers.
“Those travelling because of the death of a close family member, a seriously ill family member or a medical examination need to show police authorisation letters to the officer at the roadblock. These letters of authorisation can be obtained from any nearby police station.
“Passengers of domestic flights to and from Kuching are advised to apply for a police permit before booking a plane ticket,” he said, adding that if the ticket had been purchased, the person could go to any nearest police station to get the letter.
Dev added that passengers would not be allowed to board a plane without a police permit. The same goes for passengers of express boats and express buses or provincial buses.
The general public are strongly advised to postpone any movements between Zone 1 and Zone 2 after Aug 14.
“If the need to travel is too urgent, they should go to the nearest police station to apply for permission,” said Dev.
