Opposition Leader and Vanimo-Green MP, Belden Namah has called on the Government to beef up border protection as COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Indonesia.
Speaking in a recent media conference in Port Moresby, Namah confirmed that people living along the border in his Vanimo-Green district are crossing into Indonesia on a regular basis despite the border lockdown and travel restrictions brought forward by the Pandemic Act passed in Parliament last year.
“I see people are moving in and out freely. Government here can say the border is closed, but the people on the ground say it is open,” Namah said.
The land border remains the greatest threat to a possible COVID-19 outbreak in PNG, and Namah is calling on the Marape led Government to pay attention to this issue and address it.
“Successive Governments have paid little attention to border security but more so because of this pandemic, we expect this Government to pay more attention to border security but nothing has happened,” he said.
Namah maintained the lack of Government presence between Western and West Sepik is the main reason why people are crossing into Indonesia.
