KOTA KINABALU: Inter-district travel ban will still be enforced in Sabah under Phase Two of the National Recovery Plan which begins in the state today.
However, travelling between Kota Kinabalu, Putatan and Penampang is permitted as they are considered one district.
The updated Sabah’s standard operating procedures (SOP) released by the Sabah’s National Security Council on Friday, said that inter-district travel is only allowed for emergency (medical and death), work (government and private), Covid-19 vaccination appointments and essential services.
Movements for disaster and death cases need the police’s permission, it said.
For the inter-district travel, the state government is allowing Sabahan spouses, permanent residents, essential services with immigration passes, civil servants working in Sabah, official business, emergency or hospital reviews from Sarawak and transporters with related supporting documents.
Police will be responsible in implementing the movement controls with the help of the military, ESSCom, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, Civil Defence Force and Rela.
Most of the SOPs are similar to the Movement Control Order’s except there is no mention on dine-in.
Kota Kinabalu City Hall has allowed dine-ins to resume at eateries amidst the uncertainty over the SOP in Sabah.
Kota Kinabalu mayor Nooliza Alip had said that enforcers would not be issuing compound notices for eateries allowing dine-ins.
Meanwhile, Sabahans travelling to the peninsular and Sarawak are not required to undergo Covid-19 RT-PCR tests before departure.
The SOP also mentioned that the workforce capacity in the private sector is increased from 60 to 80 per cent, including operations departments.
Thirty per cent civil servants are allowed to be in offices while the other 70 per cent work from home.
Activities and services in all airports and ports are allowed.
Economic sectors in the essential services and their chains are also allowed to operate including agriculture, fisheries, livestock, while restaurants, cafes and food outlets can operate from 6am to 9pm.
Convenience stores, mini markets and hypermarkets are allowed to operate from 6am to 8pm.