VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

IDI prepares to deploy more healthcare workers amid COVID spike - 

The executive board of the Indonesian Medical Association (IDI) has prepared a number of schemes for strengthening human resources (HR) to optimize the handling of COVID-19.

"The first scheme that has been prepared is for general practitioners who have completed their internship. They could be prepared to assist in health services," Adib Khumaidi, head of the PB IDI's Doctor Mitigation Team, said at an online press conference here on Friday.

Another scheme involves deploying medical students who have passed and received a doctor's professional competency test certification, he informed.

"Those who have just passed and after they have taken the competency test (will be deployed). The principle is that they have finished the competency test and the competency certificates are registered, hence they can carry out their work," he explained.

Regarding the internship, he said that IDI has asked the Ministry of Health to use interns to form support teams at health facilities that currently need more healthcare workers.

"So, after passing the competency test and having been registered, they can carry out internship service practices, as we have done for Wisma Athletes," Khumaidi said.

The IDI is still awaiting approval from the Health Ministry to implement such a conversion scheme, he informed. The association will later deploy volunteers in areas that needed health workers for handling COVID-19, he added.

A total of 405 Indonesian doctors have succumbed to COVID-19 as of June 27, 2021, as per government data.

Indonesia has been carrying out a national vaccination program, which has been prioritizing healthcare workers, including doctors and nurses, since January 13, 2021. The program has mostly used CoronaVac vaccines developed by Sinovac of China.

Meanwhile, based on data from the COVID-19 Handling Task Force, Indonesia's COVID-19 cases have once again hit a record, with daily new cases reaching 25,830 on Friday, bringing the tally to 2,228,938 cases.

Indonesia also added a record number of daily deaths at 539 on Friday, bringing the death toll to 59,534.

Jakarta added the highest number of infections at 9,399, followed by West Java (4,920) and Central Java (2,538).

With the second wave of COVID-19 infections driving rates of hospitalization and deaths to record highs, the government has decided to impose emergency restrictions in Java and Bali Islands from July 3 to July 20, 2021.

The new restrictions aim to cut daily cases to below 10 thousand, and will include work-from-home orders for all non-essential sectors and the continued closure of schools and universities.

During the emergency restrictions, public amenities like beaches, parks, tourist attractions, and places of worship will remain closed, while restaurants will be allowed to only offer take-away or delivery services.

From 12 a.m. Saturday, the Jakarta police will "lock" Jakarta, so there will be strict restrictions and checks on all those trying to enter or leave Jakarta//ANT

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto. (ANTARA/HO-Kemenko Perekonomian) - 

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto has said that consumer protection plays an important role in national economic growth.

“Public consumption contributes 57 percent to the gross domestic product (GDP). Indonesia's population is also very large, which means that the largest market potential in ASEAN (it) is important to maintain public trust and purchasing power," he said in a statement issued on Friday.

Consumer protection would build public trust in transactions, which would have an effect on increasing consumption, including in the form of controlling the COVID-19 pandemic, he added.

In terms of economic recovery, Hartarto said, government consumption has encouraged an improvement in household consumption and investment. The improvement in domestic demand has led to an increase in production activity in the business sector, he added.

“Indicators of economic recovery have continued in May (2021) and the consumer confidence index has continued to rise to an optimistic level of 104.4, the retail sales index has experienced a positive growth of 12.9 percent (yoy), bringing the manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) to its highest level of 55.3," he noted.

Furthermore, consumer protection institutions have played a central role in ensuring the fulfillment of consumer rights during the pandemic and the government has had a role in protecting consumers and encouraging goods and service business actors to provide quality, quantity, and security guarantees for goods and or services, the minister said.

"The government will continue to ensure the availability of complaint channels, complaint handling, and consumer dispute resolution," Hartarto assured.

Meanwhile, Chairman of the National Consumer Protection Agency (BPKN) Rizal E Halim has said the agency has so far provided suggestions and considerations to ministries/agencies as well as reports to President Joko Widodo.

From 2005 to 2021, the BPKN has provided 212 recommendations, he informed. Of these, 46 recommendations have received a direct response from ministries/agencies, he said. So there are still 166 recommendations that have not received a response as of June 30, 2021, he added.

"In 2021, BPKN has provided 12 recommendations and only 4 recommendations have been responded to in writing by ministries/agencies that have been accepted by BPKN," Halim informed.

He said he hopes the acceleration of synchronization, harmonization, and policy response in the field of consumer protection under the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs can be used to build a conducive and equitable business climate.

"Consumer protection needs to be prioritized as one of the national strategic programs, both directly and indirectly, to help accelerate the national economic recovery," Halim stressed//ANT

A screenshot of Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas delivering the results of a meeting on restrictions on community movement during the implementation of emergency PPKM on Friday (July 2, 2021). (ANTARA/Asep Firmansyah) - 

The successful implementation of emergency public activity restrictions (emergency PPKM) in Java and Bali requires citizen participation, Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas has said.

"So that efforts to handle the COVID-19 pandemic can run effectively and optimally. No matter how good and strict the rules are, if they do not involve community participation, they will be useless," the minister said in Jakarta on Friday.

Quoting President Joko Widodo, he said that the policies issued by the government are solely for the sake of protecting and maintaining the health and safety of the public.

So, the community must work hand in hand for the successful implementation of the emergency PPKM, he added.

One thing that can be done at the community level is following every recommendation issued by the government, he advised.

"This government's effort is solely to protect the public and maintain their health and safety," he reiterated.

Earlier, the Ministry of Religion had said it will regulate restrictions on religious activities during the implementation of emergency PPKM from July 3 to July 20, 2021 in Java and Bali, including the closure of places of worship such as mosques, churches, and temples.

"The Ministry of Religion has also prepared regulations to abolish worship in places of worship, such as mosques, churches, temples, and so on," Minister Qoumas said.

He said the Ministry of Religion will issue a circular to regulate worship during emergency PPKM as well as to reinforce its previous circular.

The ministry will not just prohibit religious activities in places of worship, but also regulate “takbiran”, which involves the chanting of the phrase ‘God is great’.

People will not be allowed to venture on the streets for "takbiran" in zones where emergency PPKM are being implemented, Quomas said. The government will also prohibit “takbiran” in mosques in such areas, he added.

During Eid al-Adha, the slaughter of sacrificial animals for Eid will need to be carried out in an open place, he said.

The person who performs the “qurban” (animal sacrifice) can witness the slaughtering process, he added.

Then, during the distribution process, the sacrificial meat will be given directly by the committees to those who are entitled to it at their respective homes, he said//ANT

A screenshot of representatives from several government institutions attending a virtual press conference on the preparations for the enforcement of emergency public activity restrictions (PPKM Darurat) during Eid al-Adha, on Friday (July 2, 2021). (ANTARA/Andi Firdaus) - 

As many as 53 thousand personnel from the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the National Police (Polri) will be deployed to enforce emergency public activity restrictions ( emergency PPKM) across regions during Eid al-Adha this year.

"We have safe operation of Nusa II COVID-19. Of the seven task forces formed, we will deploy the police's community development (Binmas) task force to strengthen emergency PPKM at the village to sub-district levels," assistant operations (Asplops) to the National police chief, Inspector General of Police, Imam Sugianto, said at a virtual press conference originating from Jakarta on Friday.

The press conference was organized by the Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Culture (Kemenko PMK).

The joint personnel will comprise more than 21 thousand members of the National Police and more than 32 thousand members of the TNI, Sugianto informed.

"Although this number is not significant, with the planned activities on the 12 targets set in the emergency PPKM, hopefully it can be effective and on target," he added.

The building of community discipline regarding health protocols and the implementation of COVID-19 vaccinations has been a focus of the police's community development (Binmas) task force, he pointed out.

Binmas personnel, along with the sub-precinct police (Polsek), will visit prayer rooms and mosques in remote areas and appeal to the public to follow the health protocols and regulations for the implementation of Eid al-Adha, in accordance with the provisions of the Ministry of Religion, Sugianto said.

"Police personnel will move by patrolling with the TNI and related parties to visit mosques in sub-districts located on outskirts to give appeals," he informed.

The initial strategy will be to raise awareness and educate the public regarding the provisions of emergency PPKM for the next week, he said.

"At least, in the next week, we will educate and appeal to the public by visiting mosque caretakers," he stated.

Sugianto reminded field personnel to prioritize persuasive methods while speaking to communities, especially during the Eid al-Adha worship//ANT