JAKARTA - President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has put Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan in charge of handling the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic handling in nine provinces most significantly affected by the pandemic.
Bersama Kepala Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana (BNPB) dan Ketua Satuan Tugas Penanganan COVID-19 Doni Monardo, Luhut ditugaskan Jokowi untuk menangani pandemi COVID-19 di DKI Jakarta, Jawa Barat, Jawa Tengah, Jawa Timur, Bali, Sumatera Utara, Kalimantan Selatan, Sulawesi Selatan, dan Papua. Along with National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) Head and COVID-19 Task Force Chief Lt. Gen. Doni Monardo,
"The President has instructed that within two weeks we have to achieve three targets, namely lowering the number of daily additional cases, increasing the recovery rate, and lowering the mortality rate," Mr Pandjaitan said in an official statement on the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment's website, Monday (14/9).
Following Mr Widodo's instruction, Mr Pandjaitan held an coordination meeting attended by, among others, Mr Monardo; Health Minister Dr Terawan Agus Putranto; Coordinating Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Minister Mahfud MD; Coordinating Economic Affairs Minister Airlangga Hartarto; Coordinating Human Development and Culture Minister Muhadjir Effendy; Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan; West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil; Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo; and East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa.
To achieve the three targets set by Mr Widodo, Mr Pandjaitan said, he has formulated a strategy in the form of a justice operation to enforce health protocols.
"The justice operation aims to enforce health protocols, improve COVID-19 treatment management to lower the mortality rate and increase the recovery rate, and specifically handle COVID-19 clusters in each province," he added. (MS)