Team sent to border failed to complete task, says official

By CLIFFORD FAIPARIK
SOUTH Fly District Development Authority chief executive officer Tawa Gebia is concerned that the health team sent to check border villagers in Western failed to complete their work.
Gebia said he was concerned with reports that the 16-member team had stayed at Morehead Station for a week with full travelling allowances paid to them and returned to Daru without checking the villagers along the southern Indonesian-PNG border for Covid-19.
“These villagers are more vulnerable to the Covid-19 than any other area in the district since they mingle daily with the Indonesians,” Gebia said.
“And I will be sending them back again but this time by helicopter and this time they will have to carry out testing on these border villagers. The last time they went by dinghy.
“We can’t continue to keep these villagers in suspense and lockdown much longer.
“They need to know their health status so that they can move out and look for food.
“These officers returned halfway giving excuses that they have no personnel protective equipment (PPEs) like masks and gloves to approach these vulnerable villagers.
“So we have taken up their concern and are now preparing them well to send them back to the border.
“We have the helicopter here now and they will return by Friday to commence sampling and swabbing tests on the villagers.
“Right now, all these villagers are persons of interest (POI) due to their close physical daily encounter with Indonesian border villagers.
“After all, they are related and have land on each side of the border where they do gardening, hunting and fishing.”
Meanwhile, Morehead local level government president Robert Karum said the health team did not check the villagers at Wereave, Kanderigut, Mermer, Mengete, Indodo, Iokwa and Wemnever – right at the border.
“They are still being isolated for one month now,” he said.