File photo for illustration purposes
KUCHING (Jan 29): The State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) has tightened its standard operating procedures (SOP) on funerals and prohibited all social activities, including birthday celebrations and reunions.
This includes requiring the bereaved family to inform the death to the police or district office for crowd management.
“Only immediate family members are allowed to attend funerals during the Covid-19 Movement Control Order (MCO) and Controlled (CMCO) period,” SDMC chairman Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas told a press conference on the daily Covid-19 update at the old State Legislative Assembly building today.
According to the updated SOP on funerals today, the maximum number of people allowed is set at 30 at any one time, subject to the size of the home (private home, longhouse or funeral parlour), taking the 1 meter physical distancing into consideration.
At the burial ground, the 20 people allowed are limited to burial service providers and immediate family members.
For the pre and post-funeral ceremonies such as the funeral wake and ‘ngetas ulit’, only immediate family members are allowed.
Other previous guidelines remain the same.
The tightened SOP was issued just four days after SDMC announced on Monday that only a maximum of 30 people are allowed to attend funerals, and only up to 20 people can attend the ceremony at burial grounds in Covid-19 MCO and CMCO areas. All other types of social activities and gatherings are not allowed.
“All types of social activities and gatherings are not allowed during MCO and CMCO. These include weddings, feasts, engagements, receptions, ‘aqiqah’, ‘tahlil’, ‘doa selamat’, anniversary celebrations, birthday celebrations, reunions, retreats and others,” said Uggah.
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