Youth and Sports Minister Zainudin Amali has said that he will shift base to Papua for easier coordination during the National Sports Week (PON), which will be held from October 2-15, 2021.

He said he will regularly visit the sports venues in the four regional clusters in Papua which are holding PON events to ensure the national multi-sporting event runs safely and smoothly.

“To facilitate the coordination and communication with the PON Organizing Committee who are there, my colleagues and I will move our office to Papua. I will be there during the PON to ensure that everything goes well,” he informed at a virtual press conference here on Friday.

“We will visit several match venues both in Jayapura district and city, Merauke district as well as Mimika district,” he said.

He said he had sought permission from President Joko Widodo to have his office moved to Papua till the end of the national sporting event.

He further said that he will attend any limited meetings held during the period virtually.

“Moreover, I have experienced the virtual limited meeting amid my prior visit to Jayapura,” he remarked.

Furthermore, he informed that there have been no significant obstacles to the implementation of the XX Papua PON to date.

In fact, the first match of the national event — which was the men’s softball match featuring Lampung versus Sulawesi Tenggara — in Jayapura city went smoothly, the minister said.

Strict health protocols have been implemented properly as directed by the Health Ministry and the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) for the event, he added.

“Moreover, vaccination acceleration still continues to be carried out,” Amali said.

Source: Antara News