Jokowi Claims Govt Closely Monitors Rise in COVID-19 Cases
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15 December 2023 14:47 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian President Joko Widodo or Jokowi stressed that the government continues to closely monitor the current spike in COVID-19 cases, with Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin leading the efforts.
“The Health Ministry and staffers are always following and monitoring it,” he said when met in the Monas area, Gambir, Central Jakarta, on Friday, Dec. 15.
The state head also said that according to the Health Ministry, the virus spread is still under control.
The Jakarta Health Agency recorded 131 additional cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, Dec. 13, bringing the total number of active patients to 365 people.
Ngabila Salama, the agency’s head of epidemiology, surveillance, and immunization unit, said the number of COVID-19 cases in the capital had tripled by early December 2023. Other regions also saw an increase in positive cases.
Tjandra Yoga Aditama, a professor at the University of Indonesia’s (UI) Faculty of Medicine, on Thursday, called for the government to strengthen surveillance of ILI (influenza-like illness) and SARI (severe acute respiratory infection) to respond to the increase in COVID-19 cases. Tjandra said the surveillance data and information should also be made available to the public.
The recent surge in COVID-19 cases was reportedly triggered by the emergence of new virus variants EG2 and EG5. President Jokowi revoked the COVID-19 pandemic status in Indonesia in June 2023 and changed it to endemic since then.
DANIEL A. FAJRI | AISYAH AMIRA WAKANG | PRIBADI WICAKSONO | ANWAR SISWADI
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