TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Following the direct order from President Jokowi, Head of Riau Island’s Center for Settlement Infrastructure Albert Reinaldo announced that the construction of a hospital specifically built to treat communicable diseases has started at Riau Island’s Galang Island, Batam City.

The sub-agency of the Public Works and Public Housing Ministry’s directorate-general announced that the land at the island has been cleared and awaits for the next phase; land maturation.

“The work has started on Saturday, March 7. Land clearing is nearly done,” said Albert at Batam on Sunday, March 8. “The hospital we will build there is hoped to be free from floods.”

The hospital is set on 7 - 8 hectares of land sitting over land formerly used as “camp Vietnam” but did not reveal plans as what would be done on the old hospital facility that remains in the location. As of now, a hospital and house of worship reminiscent of the island’s older facilities remain.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo previously ordered for the construction of a hospital in an isolated location to specially treat patients with highly-infectious diseases such as the current COVID-19 coronavirus global outbreak that originated from China’s province of Wuhan.

The president also ambitiously ordered the project to be completed within one month.

Moreover, to meet the president’s deadline, the Galang Island hospital will be constructed using the same method used by the Chinese government in building the two hospitals to treat coronavirus patients that was completed under two weeks.

“We will adopt a modular system such as the one in Wuhan. Which we hope will accelerate the construction apart from the materials that are being produced in Jakarta,” said Albert.

ANTARA