VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

A healthcare worker checks a participant's health before administering the COVID-19 vaccine. (ANTARA/Erik/my) - 

The government of South Solok district, West Sumatra has reported that 23,519 or 16.3 percent of the targeted population of 143,956 in the district has been vaccinated against COVID-19.

As many as 6,229 or 4.3 percent residents have received both the first and second vaccine doses, it informed.

"At the moment, people's desire to get COVID-19 vaccination is still high, and also the vaccine stock is still available. So, those who want to get vaccinated can just visit nearby public health centers," Mega Verta Christina from South Solok Health Office said in Padang Aro on Friday.

The COVID-19 vaccination program in the district has been rolled out in several stages, he said. In the first stage, vaccinations have been administered to up to 1,300 healthcare workers, higher than the initial target of 986 workers. Meanwhile, 1,039 healthcare workers have received their second dose as well, he added.

In the second stage, which targeted workers in the public services, 6,572 of the 9,994 targeted recipients have received their first vaccine, with 3,326 workers also receiving the second vaccine dose, he informed.

As for the elderly population, 796 of the 13,108 targeted recipients have received their first dose and 86 have received their second dose, he said.Out of the 100,056 general population targeted by the program, 12,406 have received their first dose of the vaccine and 1,754 have received their second dose, he added.

Meanwhile, 1,423 out of 19,812 teenagers in the 12-17 age group have received their first dose and 24 have received their second dose, Christina said.

In South Solok, the Gotong Royong Vaccine has been allocated for 1,022 people, he added.

Twenty-three prospective hajj pilgrims have received their first dose of vaccine, with 19 also completing their second dose, he said.

According to Christina, the positivity rate in South Solok has reached up to 8.40 percent, with 20,457 people who took the RT PCR test testing positive for the virus.

"There are 1,719 positive cases of COVID-19 in South Solok; 1,323 people have recovered and 361 are in treatment or isolation and 35 people have died," he disclosed.

Given the increase in COVID-19 cases in South Solok, ramping up tracing and tracing is necessary to prevent further transmission, he added//ANT

Chairman of the Constitutional Court (MK) Anwar Usman presents a mandate on the Constitutional Court's 18th anniversary ceremony, streamed online from Jakarta on Friday (August 13, 2021). (ANTARA PHOTO/Muhammad Zulfikar/KT) - 

Chairman of the Constitutional Court (MK), Anwar Usman, has invited judges and all employees in the judicial environment to use criticism to improve work performance.

"Good cooperation has made the Constitutional Court thrive, despite the many criticisms and even very sharp ones from various parties," Usman stated during a ceremony marking the court's 18th anniversary, which was streamed online here on Friday.

He thanked judges, court clerks, and all employees of the court who had shown dedication to the institution, noting that this was the second time the court's anniversary had to be held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

He then asked all employees to remain grateful and celebrate the court's 18th birthday celebration with wisdom, despite the pandemic situation.

Each time and period comes with its own challenges, he said. Currently, Indonesia and a number of countries in the world have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has required people to make adjustments, he added.These adjustments have also been included in the Constitutional Court's environment, with the entire work system asked to adapt to the new circumstances, he informed.

"Similarly, in our duties as judicial power authorities, the legal proceedings are no longer conducted in the usual way," he pointed out.

Starting from the case registration process, collation of the application requirements, evidence, to the verdict issuance, there is a need to adapt to the new work culture, he explained.

Not only that, in the secretarial field, employees who provide services are also facing many challenges and performance dynamics, Usman said.

"Work facilities, environment, and infrastructure have become a part of the challenge that must be overcome," he remarked.

The adjustments aim to keep the performance of the court institutions running optimally as it should be, he said adding, "To ease these challenges, let us not forget the importance of teamwork.”//ANT

Firefighters conducting rescue work at the site of a mudslide caused by heavy rain in Unzen, Nagasaki Prefecture. (Photo: AFP/Nagasaki Kenou Fire Department handout) - 

One woman was dead and two people were missing on Saturday (Aug 14) after torrential rains touched off a landslide and engulfed at least two houses in western Japan, with rivers overflowing their banks as rain continued to pound the area.

A wide swath of western Japan, particularly the southernmost main island of Kyushu, saw record levels of rainfall, with as much as 956 mm falling in one area in the three days to noon on Saturday.Japan broadened its highest level 5 risk alerts to cover more than 1.5 million people, NHK public broadcaster said, while the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) warned of more rain to come over the next few days.

"People must take steps to secure their safety," a JMA official told a news conference.

"There has been almost no movement of the rain front over Japan, and it's being fed by warm, humid air, which is making it more active."

Rivers broke their banks in several cities, including Kurume in Fukuoka, and were dangerously close to the tops in others. The Kamo River running through the ancient capital of Kyoto was high but not flooded as of noon Saturday.

Landslides hit several parts of Nagasaki prefecture, with one sweeping away at least two houses and killing Fumiyo Mori, 59. Her husband and daughter were missing, and military personnel joined rescuers looking for them, NHK said.

Shinkansen bullet train service was halted along much of the line running from Tokyo to Kyushu.

Heavy rains have moved into the central part of the largest main island of Honshu. The JMA has warned that the front is likely to remain over the nation for about a week//CNA

Residents queue to receive cash assistance from the government following the imposition of two-week lockdown to prevent the spread of the Delta variant in Manila, Philippines on Aug 11, 2021. (Photo: Reuters/Lisa Marie David) - 

The Philippine health minister, facing questions over more than US$1 billion in COVID-19 spending, denied on Saturday (Aug 14) that any money was "stolen", as his department vowed to account for every peso.

The country is battling one of Asia's worst coronavirus outbreaks, and the spread of the virulent Delta variant is overwhelming hospitals and healthcare workers.

"You will be assured that no money went into corruption. None was stolen. I am sure of that," Health Secretary Francisco Duque told DZMM radio on Saturday.

The state auditor has flagged "deficiencies" involving 67.3 billion pesos (US$1.33 billion), casting doubts on the regularity of related transactions in the country's pandemic response.

The health ministry said it will submit its explanation, including required documents, to the state auditor next week, ahead of a Sep 27 deadline.

With more than 1.71 million infections and 29,838 deaths, the Philippines has the second-highest COVID-19 cases and fatalities in Southeast Asia, next to Indonesia.

The Manila capital region, an urban sprawl of 16 cities that is home to more than 13 million people, remains under a strict lockdown to contain the spread of the Delta variant.

Only around 11 per cent of the country's 110 million people are fully immunised. Nearly a quarter of the country's 1,291 hospitals are at the critical risk level - with occupancy rates at or above 85 per cent - government data showed.

Small hospitals near the capital region are getting overwhelmed by surging cases.

A 50-bed public hospital in Binan city south of the capital is trying to treat 100 to 200 patients, most of them in corridors and tents separated by curtains in the parking lot, Dr. Melbril Alonte, its medical director, told DZMM radio

"The sad truth is patients continue to increase and there are no signs of it easing," Alonte said, adding that the facility's nurses and doctors are already getting sick from exhaustion//CNA