TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The national COVID-19 task force’s head of health management, Akmal Taher, stepped down from the position after officially filing for his resignation to the task force head, Doni Monardo, on Thursday evening, September 24.

The professor at the University of Indonesia’s Faculty of Medicine said he would spend the day finalizing a number of legal aspects related to his resignation.

“Yes, I sent my resignation letter last night. But I already announced it verbally before,” said Akmal Taher on Friday morning. “I feel I can take roles in other places to perform the steps that I believe in, which are testing, tracing, and treatment.”

Akmal’s last statement refers to what he believes is the key to facing the pandemic ever since joining the COVID-19 task force in March, which is to conduct stringent testing, tracing, and treat cases that will inevitably emerge. He believes that the testing and tracing conducted by the government has not been maximized—particularly in efforts to suppress mortality rates in nine provinces in the country.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has appointed Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, who is the Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment, to execute the task.

The task force oversees four aspects during the pandemic, which include the handling of healthcare, behavior changes, information technology, and public communication.

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ANDITA RAHMA