TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Doni Monardo, the chairman of the COVID-19 mitigation task force, said the majority of people diagnosed with the novel coronavirus disease or COVID-19 in Indonesia are asymptomatic carriers (OTG), thus possible transmissions from these carriers should be kept an eye on.

“The fact is in our country, more than 70 percent, or even higher in several regions at up to 90 percent, of the patients did not show symptoms,” said Doni after a limited meeting at the Presidential Palace, Central Jakarta, Monday, June 29.

Doni said the situation contradicted a prior statement by the World Health Organization (WHO) that OTF had the potential of transmitting the disease to others—a statement that later sparked questions and debates, which prompted the WHO to revise it.

“WHO had revised its statement. Its words change frequently,” said Doni, who is also the head of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB).

He stressed that asymptomatic people were those with high risks of infecting others. Doni said if they were not put under quarantine, they could spread the virus to anyone, with the highest risk of transmission faced by people with comorbidities or congenital diseases.

“Based on the latest data, over 85 percent of the COVID-19 death toll involved those with comorbidities, such as hypertension, diabetes, asthma, tuberculosis, cancers, and other illnesses,” Doni concluded.

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EGI ADYATAMA