Jung Sye-kyun: "'Carelessness Virus' Must Stop... Please Stay Alert"

Presiding over the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) Meeting
"COVID-19 Attacks When Vigilance Loosens"

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun presiding over the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters meeting on COVID-19 response held at the Government Seoul Office Building on the 14th. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun emphasized on the 14th that "the resurgence of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) appears together with the 'carelessness virus,'" and stated, "We must no longer repeat such trial and error."

At the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) meeting held at the Government Seoul Office on the same day, Prime Minister Chung said, "Looking back on the fight against COVID-19 over the past nine months, whenever there was even a slight loosening of vigilance throughout society, the coronavirus inevitably attacked us."

He added, "We are now at a crossroads to determine whether to establish a sustainable quarantine system in daily life," emphasizing, "Settling a sustainable quarantine system is precisely the practice of K-quarantine in everyday life."

He continued, "For this, autonomy and responsibility are very important," and urged, "Citizens should have a sense of responsibility and strictly follow individual quarantine rules such as wearing masks in all aspects of daily life."

To local governments, he ordered, "Please apply quarantine measures suitable for each region promptly and flexibly with autonomy."

He also stated, "The government will prepare phased measures for the autumn travel intensive management period, which will last about a month starting this weekend," and requested, "Citizens should refrain from long-distance travel as much as possible, and even if they travel, actively comply with the government's quarantine guidelines."

Furthermore, Prime Minister Chung expressed regret again regarding the disruption in last month's free influenza vaccination program, saying, "As the head of the CDSCH, I sincerely apologize for causing concern to the public."

He urged the relevant authorities, "Since the vaccination has resumed with difficulty, please ensure thorough vaccine supply management so that cases where citizens have to wait a long time or fail to receive vaccinations do not occur on the ground."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.