By Bambang Purwanto
JAKARTA, Sept 6 (NNN-XINHUA) – Jakarta continues to see daily increases in the number of COVID-19 cases, although the Indonesian capital city administration has extended the transitional period of the large-scale social restrictions, also known as a lock-down for five times.
The number of COVID-19 cases in Jakarta has been surging in the past two weeks, making the region a province with the highest positivity rate of cases in Indonesia.
Jakarta Governor, Anies Baswedan, decided to extend the transitional period of the large-scale social restrictions for the fifth time on Aug 27.
The governor called on residents to seriously comply with the health protocols during the fifth extension, reminding them to stay at home, wear face masks, wash hands and keep social distancing.
Baswedan issued the first transitional period of lock-down on June 5, and extended up to the fifth time, effective from Aug 28 to Sept 10.
Vice Governor, Ahmad Riza Patria, said, the Jakarta administration would improve the quality of facilities and infrastructures in mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic, during the extended transitional period.
“Among the measures are to improve the quality and increase the number of health care workers and professionals, in addition to improving the laboratories, hospitals and supporting needs, including logistics, he said over the weekend.
Trubus Rahadiansyah, an observer of public policies from a private university in Jakarta, expressed concern over the resumption of activities in offices, markets and tourist sites, as well as, a discourse that movie theatres would resume in the near future, as these measures were feared to increase new clusters of COVID-19.
Meanwhile, University of Indonesia’s epidemiologist, Tri Miko Yunis Wahyono, suggested a new scheme of restrictions and applying tighter control over areas with high risks of the COVID-19.
The authorities should also make maps of zones of transmission rates, to see whether or not an area is still possible of having economic activities with tighter health protocols, the epidemiologist said.
COVID-19 cases in Indonesia rose by 3,128 within one day, to 190,665, with the death toll adding by 108 to 7,940 on Friday, the health ministry reported yesterday.
The ministry also reported that, Jakarta recorded new 877 cases yesterday, the highest among all the provinces in Indonesia, bringing the total tally in the capital city to 45,157 cases.
The total recovered patients in Jakarta reached 33,991, while those who died of the disease totalled 1,265.
The cases in Jakarta mostly emanated from such clusters as market places, government and private offices, as well as, state and private enterprises.– NNN-XINHUA
