President Jokowi stresses on prioritizing public safety in handling COVID-19 pandemic

Selasa, 8 September 2020 14:35 WIB

President Joko Widodo. ANTARA/HO-Humas Kemensetneg/am

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) emphasized that public safety was the government's priority in coping with the far-reaching public health and economic impacts of the ongoing novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic throughout the nation.

To this end, the government is mandated to have in place extraordinary policies in handling the twin crises, he notified participants of a meeting on auditing the state's finance in response to the COVID-19 pandemic at the State Palace here, Tuesday.

"All measures must be taken as quickly as possible, with simple procedures, for the sake of public safety. The people's safety is far superior than the complicated procedures that we make ourselves," he noted.

In such a critical situation, the government still requires a flexible work arrangement and simple procedures for quick, appropriate, and efficient handling of all problems, President Jokowi stated.

At the meeting, President Jokowi also highlighted the government’s steps since the onset of the outbreak of this infectious disease until now, including evacuating Indonesian citizens from the affected countries.

The government has also deployed its apparatuses to assist the public, at large, to implement preventive measures as mandated in the health protocols and prepared hospitals, isolation houses, medical equipment, and medicines in a short period of time, he stated.

Meanwhile, in handling the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on Indonesia's economy, the government has extended the outreach of its social aid programs to help those acutely reeling from the tremendous impacts, he noted.

President Jokowi echoed his support to the Supreme Audit Agency's (BPK's) endeavors to ensure transparent, accountable, and effective utilization of the state's finances in handling the COVID-19 pandemic.

Coronavirus infections initially surfaced in the Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of 2019, while the Indonesian government officially announced the country's first confirmed cases on March 2, 2020.

On Monday, Indonesia recorded 2,880 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total tally of infections to 196,989, according to the country's Task Force for COVID-19 Response.

With 2,077 people recovering from COVID-19, the total recoveries reached 140,652, while the death toll touched 8,130, with 105 people succumbing to the disease over a 24-hour period.

In the wake of the pandemic, the Indonesian economy had contracted 5.32 percent in the second quarter of this year.

EDITED BY INE