TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - In the context of Jakarta’s PSBB social restriction reinstatement, former Indonesian vice president Jusuf Kalla reminds people that President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo himself asserts that health far exceeds any other priority.

“Don’t forget that the president himself had asserted that public health must be prioritized, therefore I think there needs to be no contradiction between provincial and central government,” the former vice president wrote in a statement on Sunday.

The contradiction Jusuf Kalla refers to is the debate that has risen between central government officials and Jakarta administration officials. Following Governor Anies Baswedan’s PSBB reinstatement, a number of state-ministers expressed their objections.

To that, Jusuf Kalla shared his personal view in the letter which supports the reinstatement of the social restriction for the sake of reducing the number of COVID-19 cases.

“Whether we like it or not, we must follow the PSBB for the fact the number of cases has risen. A firm action must be done, if not, [COVID-19] cases will peak even higher and present more dangers,” Jusuf Kalla asserts.

The former VP made it clear that the pandemic has clearly caused the economy to slump, which is why he urges the containment of the viral spread to eventually recover the economy. “When the main cause is eliminated, the economy will eventually recover,” he maintained.

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DEWI NURITA