Prime Minister Hun Sen is set to address the nation on December 29. SPM
Prime Minister Hun Sen is set to address the nation regarding the “November 28 community event” – a reference to last month’s outbreak and community transmission of Covid-19.
The planned address, due to be broadcast live on national televisions on December 29, comes as the Ministry of Health reported four recoveries – one community transmission case and three imported cases – with only four more remaining hospitalised as of December 28.
Television Kampuchea (TVK) said it would broadcast Hun Sen’s live address on the November 28 incident and other Covid-19-related issues from his residence in Kandal province’s Takhmao town at 9am.
This marks the second time that the prime minister will have addressed the nation concerning the recent outbreak. On December 15, he spoke for four hours about the event, safety measures being employed, and plans for the purchase of Covid-19 vaccines.
Separately, from December 20-28, over 3,000 migrant workers have returned from Thailand via checkpoints in the seven border provinces and are being quarantined as stipulated by the health ministry, according to provincial officials.
Banteay Meanchey Provincial Administration spokesman Sek Sokhom told The Post that more than 1,000 Cambodian migrant workers had returned from Thailand via the province during that time.
He said the provincial authorities had prepared sufficient quarantine accommodations for them and offered them three meals daily. The workers, he added, understood the seriousness of containing the pandemic and intended to comply with their quarantine.
“Civil servants from all departments, police and medical staff have taken turns standing by at all quarantine sites round the clock to help them if they have health problems,” he said.
Oddar Meanchey deputy provincial governor Dy Rado estimated that 1,300 returning migrant workers had entered the province from Thailand since December 20.
They were sent to quarantine facilities prepared by provincial and district authorities. Returning migrants whose homes were in other provinces were taken there for quarantine, he explained.
“In general, between 100 and 200 workers have entered the province each day. Prior to the recent outbreak in Thailand’s Samut Sakhon province, Cambodian migrant workers still had not returned to Thailand since March as both countries had agreed to close the border temporarily until further notice. Both sides have allowed only transport trucks carrying goods to cross the border,” he said.
Rado emphasised that quarantine is mandatory for all returning migrants.
Koh Kong provincial spokesman Mom Malika also said that in the past week, 23 migrant workers had returned from Thailand, all of whom had been quarantined.
“Their health is good as normal, and they are migrant workers from [Thailand’s] Trat province, not from Samut Sakhon.
They cooperated when coming to quarantine. Getting them all to quarantine locations, however, was a logistical challenge for the authorities and police because Koh Kong has so many entry routes,” he said.
Last week, the Prospective Economic Bureau of Senegal – a state agency in the Senegalese Prime Minister Office – ranked Cambodia number one in the world for containing the Covid-19 pandemic well.
