VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR)  Bambang Soesatyo has called on the Indonesian government to remain optimistic in attaining herd immunity or the target of vaccinating 70 percent of the population.

"Hence, the government should continue the efforts to expedite vaccinations and increase the national vaccination coverage by vaccinating 2.5 million people per day," Soesatyo noted in his statement here, Friday.

The speaker called to strengthen synergy between the government, the Indonesian Military (TNI), and National Police (Polri) in expediting COVID-19 vaccinations in regions, especially those with low vaccination coverage.

In addition, Soesatyo urged the government to innovate in finding solutions to identify and overcome obstacles that hinder the national vaccination program.

"I urge the government to increase the number of vaccination booths, increase mass vaccinations, or directly visit those, who have not been vaccinated. These are needed in order to achieve the target of vaccinating 70 percent of the population to achieve community immunity," the MPR speaker remarked.

Soesatyo sought the regional governments' commitment to supporting the national vaccination program and continually conducting comprehensive data collection on the COVID-19 vaccination coverage in all regions, so that areas, with low vaccination coverage, can be prioritized.

In a bid to boost immunity against COVID-19, the Indonesian government has launched a nationwide vaccination program on January 13, 2021, and President Joko Widodo was the first vaccine recipient under the program.

The central government has set a target to vaccinate at least 70 percent of the Indonesian population by December 2021.

According to the Health Ministry's data, as of October 8, 2021, as many as 98,382,941 citizens have received their first COVID-19 vaccine dose, while 56,267,095 Indonesians have been fully vaccinated. (Antaranews)