KOMPAS.com – Prime Minister New Zealand Jacinda Ardern was forced to annul her marriage to Clarke Gayford after Omicron began to enter and expand in his country.
The plan, he will marry Gayford in Gisborne, the east coast of the North Island next week.
However, after it was discovered that Omicron had begun to spread and spread in New Zealand society, this important event had to be cancelled.
Ardern, reported by The Guardian, Sunday (1/23/2022), said that his country was trying to prevent the new variant of the Covid-19 virus.
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He predicts that the Omicron case in New Zealand will reach 1,000 cases per day in the coming weeks.
“I knew this number of cases would sound very concerning for people to hear,” Ardern said.
“We will do everything we can to slow the spread and reduce the number of cases we are experiencing as a nation.”
Ardern said 9 cases of Omicron had been detected in a family who had just returned from Auckland to celebrate weddings and other events.
Officials have not been able to link the outbreak to “index cases” at the border.
“That means Omicron is now circulating in Auckland and possibly the Nelson Marlborough area, if not elsewhere,” Ardern said.
New Zealand’s status immediately shifted to “red” alert level at midnight Sunday (1/23/2022), the Prime Minister said.
Nevertheless, businesses and schools will remain open and domestic travel can continue, but the public must maintain health protocols, such as wearing masks, keeping a distance, not crowding and being vaccinated against Covid-19.
When asked about the annulment of her marriage, Ardern said: “That’s how life is. I am no different from the thousands of other New Zealanders who have felt the far more devastating impact of the pandemic. The saddest thing is the inability to be with loved ones at times when they are sick. It would be far, far beyond the sadness I was in.”
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“My wedding is not going to happen, but I join many other New Zealanders who have had such experiences as a result of the pandemic,” Ardern said.
Ardern also apologized to people who have experienced the same thing as herself because of this pandemic.
He will also try to strengthen his people to remain resilient in the face of this global epidemic so that they can continue to live.
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