MIRI – A Covid-19 positive person, who dodged the authorities and roadblocks and travelled 800km from Kuching to Bintulu, has been found to be the source of infection in both districts recently.
So was the shocking discovery by a Health Ministry (MoH) team probing the source of infection of a Covid-19 patient in Bintulu.
State Minister for Housing and Local Government Datuk Dr Sim Kui Hian expressed his dismay on social media about inter-district Covid-19 transmission despite a travel ban.
“A positive Covid-19 carrier was found to have travelled from Kuching to Bintulu (by bus) after attending a wedding in Kuching district.
“That carrier has caused the transmission of Covid-19 in Kuching and Bintulu.
“The transmission of the coronavirus from this infected person that spread from Kuching to Bintulu has occurred despite a ban on inter-district travelling,” he said.
Dr Sim questioned the effectiveness of implementing the police permit requirement to travel between district borders.
He said health teams are now investigating if this positive carrier had also infected other people at stopovers along the Kuching-Bintulu highway.
He said this is not the first time such inter-district transmission has happened in Sarawak.
He called for a serious and thorough review of procedures relating to the issuance of travel permits.
“This state has seen too many cases across district boundaries,” he said.
Sarawak has 40 districts, with 11 of them categorised as red zones due to the surge in daily infections.
Among these districts, Kuching, Sibu, Bintulu and Miri have been the worst hit.
The state recorded 114 Covid-19 deaths and some 17,000 positive infections as of yesterday evening. – The Vibes, April 5, 2021
