Scrap police permit for inter-district travel, Abdul Karim suggests as whole S’wak enters NRP Phase 3

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Inter-district travel permits and roadblocks have become common place since the start of the pandemic. — Picture by Sayuti Zainudin/Malay Mail

KUCHING (Sept 30): Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah believes that the authorities should do away with the requirement for a police permit for inter-district travel as the whole of Sarawak will enter Phase 3 of the Covid-19 National Recovery Plan (NRP) tomorrow.

“I personally opine that there should not be any police permit required for inter-district travels in Sarawak,” the Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister told The Borneo Post when prompted for comments on the latest standard operating procedures (SOP) released by the state disaster management committee today.

Abdul Karim, who is also Youth and Sports Minister, said the authorities need to further finetune the SOP for the entire state for the NRP Phase 3 as it did not look practical.

As such, he believed that further review to the SOP was necessary to address some inconsistencies.

“Suffice for enforcement agencies to ensure compliance of SOP like wearing of face mask and scanning of MySejahtera (QR code) when entering certain premises.

“But a mandatory requirement for a police permit will affect the relaxation and opening of tourism products like beach resorts, homestays and national parks,” he said.

Yesterday, Abdul Karim urged the authorities to be less restrictive in permitting travel into and within Sarawak as the state opens up its tourism industry.

He said although it was important for Sarawak to remain vigilant in stopping the spread of Covid-19, his ministry had received complaints that it was somewhat difficult to enter the state and even travel within its districts.

“Currently if one wishes to enter Sarawak or travel between the districts in Sarawak, one must get permission from the police and SDMC. We hope that when Sarawak enters Phase 3 of the NRP, all this will be relaxed a bit,” he told a press conference.