98 stranded in Nunukan now quarantined in Tawau
Published on: Wednesday, April 08, 2020
By: Sherell Jeffrey
File photo from Bernama.
Kota Kinabalu: Ninety-eight Malaysians, including 15 Permanent Resident holders stranded in Nunukan, Indonesia, since late March following the shutdown of borders to curb Covid-19 arrived in Tawau, Tuesday.They were disinfected upon boarding a 9.30am ferry from Nunukan and arrived in Tawau at 10.45am, Pertubuhan Paradigma Wanita Sabah (Awas) President Winnie Juani told Daily Express.ADVERTISEMENT
They are currently placed at a quarantine centre in Tawau.
Winnie reached out to Daily Express last week to highlight 120 Malaysians stranded in Nunukan after getting wind of the group’s plight through an acquaintance who was among those stranded.
“I was informed by my acquaintance that the remaining 22 are in Sulawesi and have registered at the embassy in Pontianak,” said Winnie, Tuesday.
The fate of the 22 was not immediately established at press time. “On April 5, I received information that 120 Malaysians are allowed to return home on April 7. But on Tuesday, I found out only 98 are coming home despite having the approval to enter,” she said.ADVERTISEMENT
Winnie had initially received a message from one of those stranded in Nunukan requesting for help from her NGO.
“I came to understand of the need to get approval from the government for the Customs, Immigration, Quarantine and Security (CIQS) Complex in Tawau to reopen.
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“The CIQS was closed due to the Movement Control Order (MCO) imposed by the Malaysian Government to contain the spread of Covid-19,” she said.
She said she decided to contact Daily Express to highlight the issue to get the government’s attention.