Recent days, a lot of people are keep asking government why they have no plan to lockdown during COVID-19 outbreaks. For your information, lockdown means prohibition against residents to come to other places (countries) because of an emergency status. It also means countries attempt to close their borders to keep residents inside. So, why has not government planned to do that lockdown?
According to Chairman of COVID-19 Handling Task Force Expert Group, Wiku Adisasmito, lockdown has great effect to our economic activities. Lockdown makes our economic status danger. A lot of people rely on daily income as their source. If government choose to lock Indonesia down, it could make economy falling down.
In other words, the absence of choice of lockdown is a form of government concern to keep our economy status at stable bars, especially for those who are truly rely on their daily incomes to keep alive.
Instead of choosing lockdown option, government preferred to roll out rapid test. Using 150,000 test kits, rapid test will be performed for those who related to positive cases of COVID-19. Then, they categorize as risk people. For example, there is a positive case, then test will be done for his or her entire families. If he or she are working, then co-workers and closest people have direct contact will be tested out.
The government also urges people to do social distancing or limit their interactions for a while to reduce spread of COVID-19. Followed by statement of Joko Widodo as President of Republic of Indonesia, remind companies to provide policies of work from home for their employees during COVID-19 outbreaks as an effort to reduce mobility of people from one to another places.
This also applies in terms of worship. MUI through Fatwa Commission remind all Muslims especially in positive areas of COVID-19 to pray at their own homes for a while. Along with MUI, Indonesian Church Alliance (PGI) calls all congregations to pray at home for at least two weeks.
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