Though Indonesia has marked a recent decline in Covid-19 cases and hospitalization, the public is urged to maintain vigilance and not be lulled into a state of euphoria, as transmission still remains a threat.
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KOMPAS TEAM
·5 minutes read
KOMPAS/KRISTI DWI UTAMI
An officer selects people who will enter the vaccination site at Alam Indah Beach, Tegal City, Central Java, Sunday (5/9/2021). Vaccinations at these tourist attractions are open on Saturdays and Sundays during September. Only people who will be vaccinated are allowed to enter the beach area.
JAKARTA, KOMPAS – The number of Covid-19 cases and the death rate have dropped significantly, but we must not become careless and ignore the health protocols, as the risk of transmission still remains.
Health Ministry data on Monday (6/9/2021) showed that the number of Covid-19 cases in Indonesia increased by 4,413 cases, bringing the cumulative total to 4,133,433 cases. Meanwhile, the number of active cases decreased by 9,248 cases, bringing the total to 146,271 cases.
Indonesia has fewer new cases and active cases than several other countries in Southeast Asia. The Philippines, for example, saw 22,415 new cases for a total of 159,633 active cases. Malaysia reported 17,352 new cases and 252,688 active cases. Meanwhile, Thailand reported 13,988 new cases and 148,622 active cases.
In light of the latest developments of Covid-19 in Indonesia, President Joko “Jokowi” Widido asked his staff to maintain good public communication on the Covid-19 pandemic to avoid excessive euphoria. Jokowi stressed that even though SARS-CoV-2 could be controlled, it was impossible that it would completely disappear.
“The public must remain aware that Covid is always around the corner. The Delta variant is always among us. If we are caught off guard, cases can spike again,” the President said on Monday.
BIRO PERS - SEKRETARIAT PRESIDEN
President Joko Widodo gave an introduction to a limited meeting on the evaluation of the Implementation of Restrictions on Community Activities (PPKM), Monday (6/9/2021).
Learning from other countries
Professor Ari Fahrial Syam, the dean of the University of Indonesia (UI) Faculty of Medicine, said the country was currently seeing a declining trend in Covid-19 cases and hospital bed occupancy rates. “But don’t fall into a euphoric state. We have to learn from other countries that, despite [full] vaccination and masks being no longer being obligatory, are seeing an increase in cases again,” he stressed.
Java has seen a significant decline in cases, but other regions in the country are still reporting high caseloads. The health protocols are still in place, especially mandatory mask wearing. According to a recent large-scale study in Bangladesh, masks have proven to be effective in reducing transmission, despite the relatively low vaccination rate in that country.
Indonesia must also learn from the mistakes of its previous strategy in pandemic handling, when restrictions were relaxed and new variants of the virus were detected. “We were careless twice, when the Alfa variant entered the country, then the Delta. We cannot allow the same thing to happen with the Mu variant. Quarantine policies must be strengthened,” said Ari.
PPKM extended
The pandemic is not yet over and the virus will not disappear. The public is urged to remain vigilant.
On Sunday, the government extended the public activity restrictions (PPKM) for regions outside Java and Bali until 20 Sept. Coordinating Economic Affairs Minister Airlangga Hartarto said that only two provinces outside Java and Bali were currently imposing PPKM Level 4, namely East Kalimantan and North Kalimantan.
“The pandemic is not yet over and the virus will not disappear. The public is urged to remain vigilant. Although the number of cases has decreased, the figures are not evenly distributed and are fluctuating,” said Airlangga.
TANGKAPAN LAYAR KANAL YOUTUBE SEKRETARIAT PRESIDEN
Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Monday (6/9/2021).
As of 5 Sept. 2021, 21 million people have been screened using the Peduli Lindungi application at public facilities, such as shopping centers, industry and sports complexes across Java and Bali. Of this figure, 761,000 people belong in the “red” category and are not permitted entry to public spaces. Meanwhile, 1,603 people belong in the “black” category, which indicates that they have tested positive for Covid-19 and have had close contact with others, but were still attempting to conduct activities in public.
“In the future, the government will take action against people in the ‘black’ category on PeduliLindungi, such as those who insist on carrying out public activities, by taking them to the centralized isolation centers. This is to safeguard and protect us all, because it is cases like these that can create new clusters in various places,” said Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan.
Indonesian epidemiologist Dicky Budiman at Griffith University warned that although caseloads had dropped, the country’s daily increase in Covid-19 deaths remained relatively high. “Our Covid-19 death tally is still the highest in ASEAN, which indicates numerous strategy problems in the upstream and downstream,” he said.
UI medical professor and former World Health Organization (WHO) Southeast Asia infectious diseases director Tjandra Yoga Aditama added that the change in the virus’ status from pandemic to endemic was unlikely to happen soon.
“How and when the pandemic ends in the world and in a country will at the very least depend on the virus, including how it mutates. In addition, it will also be determined by how we behave in implementing the health protocols and restrictive policies, as well as how science develops new diagnoses, drugs and vaccines,” he said.
According to Tjandra, a country was deemed epidemiologically safe only when the virus reproduction rate was below 1, the caseload and death toll have declined to a minimum, its health services are able to treat every active case and vaccinations are sufficient. (AIK/WKM/LKT/CAS)
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