The Macau Post Daily asked five people yesterday near Qingmao checkpoint in llha Verde about their views and feelings on the quarantine-free measures for those holding a negative COVID-19 nucleic acid test (NAT) result valid for 24 hours when entering Zhuhai from Macau, with some saying that they were worried about a new COVID-19 outbreak hitting Macau.
‘My NAT result is going to expire today’
A female local resident surnamed Cheong, who was about to cross the checkpoint, said that she was in a hurry to go to Zhuhai to open a mainland bank account for her son, who is going to study at a university in the mainland. Cheong said: “We need to go to Zhuhai now as our NAT results are going to expire today [yesterday]”, adding that her son did not want to undergo his nucleic acid test again and that they need to pay 100 patacas for two people to have an NAT. Although eligible people are now exempt from quarantine when they enter Zhuhai, Cheong said she was worried that Zhuhai will require people coming from Macau to be quarantined again at a later time. Therefore, she said: “I am thinking of asking my son to stay in the mainland and wait for his school to open”.
‘I have not gone home for a long time’
Chan, who works in Macau but lives in Zhuhai, said that he had not been home for a long time, so he was planning to go home yesterday as he did not have work to deal with for the time being. However, waiting outside the checkpoint, he said: “There is no way for me to leave Macau when there are too many people”, adding that he might not go to Zhuhai [yesterday] unless fewer people would be using the Qingmao checkpoint. Chan said that before the latest COVID-19 outbreak, he would go home three times a week. The Macau Post Daily could not confirm whether he finally decided to cross the border yesterday.
‘I had my NAT once the quarantine-free measures in Zhuhai were announced yesterday’
Lei, a female local university student who studies in Shenzhen and had just arrived in Macau, said that she had been waiting for the announcement of the quarantine-free measures for people entering Zhuhai from Macau for almost a month, adding that she had not dared to come back to Macau before the announcement. Lei said: “I was previously afraid of the quarantine in the mainland if I went back to Shenzhen for studies during the outbreak.” She also said that she had her NAT on Tuesday night once she knew that she might not need to be quarantined in the mainland anymore.
‘A new COVID-19 outbreak may occur with the relaxation of the border controls’
A local male student surnamed Ng, who studies at the public University of Macau, said that he regretted coming back to Macau yesterday as there was a huge number of people outside the checkpoint in Macau. However, he underlined that the number of people entering Macau from Zhuhai was “not that many”. Ng, who had left Macau before the latest outbreak, said: “I was bored in Macau, so I went to Zhuhai before the outbreak until today [yesterday]”, adding that he was happy about the easing of the border controls but also worried about it. Ng said: “I am a little bit worried that a new COVID-19 outbreak may occur soon with many people travelling between two places [Macau and Zhuhai] frequently.”
‘I will continue to minimise outdoor activities’
A local female resident surnamed Chan, who lives near Qingmao checkpoint, agreed with Ng and said that she was worried that the latest novel coronavirus outbreak was still going on, adding that the quarantine-free measure allowing people to travel between Zhuhai and Macau may risk another outbreak in Macau. Therefore, Chan said, she will continue to minimise her outdoor activities and avoid going to crowded places.
People walk towards Qingmao checkpoint in llha Verde yesterday afternoon. Photo: Yuki Lei
