Awaiting Quick Action from Task Force in Dealing with Pandemic

Kompas/Wawan H Prabowo

An officer sprays disinfectant at Istiqlal Mosque in Central Jakarta on Friday (13/3/2020). The task to prevent the spread of the coronavirus at the mosque involved 35 people from the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI), the military and state-owned railway company PT KAI. Istiqlal Mosque continued to hold Friday prayers amid the outbreak in Indonesia.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS - President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has stated that he will lead the task force in handling COVID-19. The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) will coordinate the rapid reaction team which, among other things, is tasked with tracing people who may have been in contact with people infected by COVID-1 9.

"I will lead the task force myself. The BNPB works with the rapid reaction team. During the recent evacuation [of Indonesian nationals] from Wuhan [where COVID-19 first appeared and became endemic in China], in just two days we decided the isolation spot in Natuna with the help of the TNI [the Indonesian Military],” the President said after reviewing COVID- 19 prevention efforts at Terminal 3 of the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Tangerang, on Friday.

Also read : Expanding Detection of Covid-19 Transmission

According to State Secretary Minister Pratikno, the President signed Presidential Decree No. 7/2020 concerning the task force on Friday. The task force is led by the head of the BNPB, Doni Monardo. "The head of the task force must report their activities to the President and supervisors," he said.

To handle the COVID-19 pandemic effectively, the government also expanded the examination of specimens of suspected COVID-19 patients. As many as 10,000 examination tools will be given to the Health Ministry. The locations for the specimen examination will also be added.

KOMPAS/ERWIN EDHI PRASETYA

A janitor cleans the Adi Soemarmo Airport Train Station in Boyolali, Central Java (13/3/2020), using disinfectant liquid to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The President also instructed the Health Ministry that the examinations could be carried out at the Institute of Tropical Diseases, Airlangga University and the Eijkman Molecular Biology Institute.

The number of COVID-19 referral hospitals has also been increased. Initially, only 100 government hospitals were prepared as referral hospitals. Now the referral hospitals have included 132 government hospitals, 109 hospitals owned by the TNI, 53 hospitals owned by the National Police and 65 hospitals owned by state-owned enterprises. As many as 135 entrances through land, sea and air have also been also heavily guarded.

On March 10, the director general of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, wrote a letter to President Jokowi. In his letter, Ghebreyesus called on Indonesia take a number of actions to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The Indonesian government was asked to improve its emergency response mechanism in dealing with COVID-19 through a national emergency declaration. Communication with people must also be built. The prevention against the spread of COVID-19 must also be expanded.

The Indonesian Foreign Ministry confirmed that it had received a letter from WHO.

KOMPAS/HARIS FIRDAUS

Janitors clean facilities at Terminal B of Adisutjipto International Airport in Sleman regency, Yogyakarta, on Friday (13/3/2020) to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Sharp increase

Presumptive positive cases of COVID-19 in the country doubled from 34 people on Thursday to 69 people on Friday. Three patients died. Thus, the number of COVID-19 patients who died had increased to four.

According to a government spokesman for coronavirus handling, Achmad Yurianto, as many as 31 patients showed no symptoms of being seriously ill, two of whom were boys aged 2 years and 3 years old. The other four patients were seriously ill. As for patients of the sixth, 14th, 19th, first and third cases have been all declared cured. "Patients of the first case and the third case were examined twice and the results were negative," Yurianto said.

The chief of the Joint Task Force, Vice Admiral Yudo Margono, on Kelapa Island, Thousand Islands, said that as many as 188 Indonesian citizens evacuated from the World Dream cruise ship recently will be sent to their respective regions after undergoing 14 days of observation on Sebaru Kecil Island.

The Central Java provincial government confirmed two positive cases of COVID-19 in Surakarta. One died on Wednesday (11/3) and another one patient was treated at the Moewardi hospital, Surakarta. The two patients were infected after attending a seminar in Bogor, West Java, on Feb 25-28.

KOMPAS/ADITYA PUTRA PERDANA

Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo (center), accompanied by Central Java Health Office head Yulianto Prabowo (left) and Moewardi Solo Hospital managing director Cahyono Hadi, gives a press statement regarding two confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Central Java (one of the patients has died) at his official home in Semarang, Central Java, on Friday (13/3/2020).

Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo said 46 patients were under supervision for COVID-19 in Central Java, 37 of whom tested negative. In Padang, one patient suspected of COVID-19 who was treated in an isolation room at the M. Djamil hospital died.

Meanwhile, the North Sumatra health office is looking for hundreds of citizens who attended a gathering at Sri Petaling Mosque, Kuala Lumpur, on Feb. 27-March 1 as several citizens of Malaysian and Brunei Darussalam who took part in the event had tested positive for COVID-19.

Several regions have intensified efforts to anticipate the spread of COVID-19, including East Java, Central Java, West Java, Bali, South Sumatra and West Kalimantan.

The University of Indonesia is holding online lectures. The rector of Multimedia Nusantara University Ninok Leksono also instructed the implementation of online midterm exams so students did not need to come to campus.

According to the head of molecular biology at the Research and Technology Ministry, Amin Soebandrio, smoking increases the risk of transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 infection, which triggers COVI-19. (SAM/NTA/EDN/INA/TAN/JOL/RTG /EI/RAM/NDU/WSI/CIP/NIK/DIA/COK/RWN/HRS /MTK / ESA)