Government solicits public understanding should tough lockdown measures be needed

The Government Office, citing Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, said the coronavirus situation in HCMC remains dire, poses a serious infection threat to nearby areas and requires stricter, more aggressive solutions.

The PM also called on the health, trade and transport ministries to devise plans to reroute traffic for transporting goods, essential items and Covid-19 patients in order not to severely disrupt people's lives.

Once a lockdown takes effect, authorities must quickly test the population for Covid to get patients out and prevent the spread of infection, he added.

He exhorted the HCMC administration to collaborate with neighboring localities to control the flow of people for both preventing infection and ensuring goods are transported.

The city would also need to make tougher decisions as it applies social distancing measures.

"As the nation's economic powerhouse with many industrial parks and large factories, applying aggressive measures to fight Covid-19 may affect production and businesses and break the supply chain, and so they should be considered carefully."

The government has sought assistance from localities which have more experience in handling the Covid crisis like Hanoi and the northern provinces of Hai Duong and Bac Giang.

HCMC is now the country’s Covid epicenter with 7,655 cases since late April when the fourth wave began. Despite having adopte social distancing for more than a month, its daily tally showed little sign of slowing down during the past week, with the number of infections increasing by 1,000 in just a few days.

The national high school graduation exams began Wednesday with around a million students across the country taking them, including 87,000 in HCMC.