Kupang Residents Queue for Covid-19 Vaccines Since Early Morning

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A large number of residents in Kupang City, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), reportedly queued since dawn or at 04:00 Central Indonesian Time (WITA) to get the registration number for the Covid-19 vaccine.

Erna, a resident of Oesapa Village, who was met at the Kupang Bhayangkara Army Hospital (RST) field on Monday morning, July 12, said she came early so she would not be late again to get a jab like the previous days.

“I've been waiting here since 4 a.m. I thought I was the first, but when I arrived, there were already many people queuing,” she claimed.

Erna recalled that she visited RST on Thursday and Friday last week at 6 a.m. but she was too late as the line was so long that she didn't get a queue number.

She also stood in line at the Public Health Center and several locations where the Covid-19 vaccination was carried out by the military or TNI and the national police. Yet still, she failed to register. “It's now very difficult to get a vaccine because many people want it,” said Erna.

Meanwhile, a resident from Alak District named Lusi said she had been at the hospital since 5 a.m. “People are starting to believe that vaccines are important amid the pandemic,” she opined.

Additionally, various administrative services such as at schools and the population and civil registry offices (Dipendukcapil), as well as travel affairs, required residents to be vaccinated against Covid-19. “This is also the reason for me and other people to wait in line for Covid-19 vaccines since morning,” said Lusi.

Read: Health Ministry Asserts People Not Obliged to Buy Covid-19 Vaccine

ANTARA