Press Statement of President of the Republic of Indonesia After Inspecting Covid-19 Emergency Hospital Monday, 23 March 2020 at 09.00 am Western Indonesian Time at Kemayoran Athlete Village, Jakarta

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.

Assalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,

Good morning,

Peace and prosperity be upon us all,

Om Swastiastu,

Namo Buddhaya,

Greetings of Virtue.

I just inspected the preparedness of Kemayoran Athlete Village to be used as emergency hospital for Covid-19 handling. The athlete village can accommodate 24 thousand people. The Government is now preparing the building to accommodate 3,000 patients and it will be equipped with proper medical facilities, including wards, doctor’s consultation rooms, and other rooms, all of which will be located separately.

I also inspected the medical supporting facilities, including ventilators and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Hopefully, this emergency hospital can start operations this afternoon. However, I personally hope that this emergency hospital will not be used, which means that available designated hospitals are able to handle the covid-19 outbreak.

I heard a lot of complaints regarding the scarcity of PPE. I need to explain that today all countries worldwide are scrambling over provision of medical equipment, such as PPE, face masks, sanitizers, and others. Alhamdulillah, praise be to God, Indonesia on Saturday (21/3) has prepared 105 thousand PPE and it will soon be distributed to hospitals throughout the country. As many as 45 thousand will be distributed to capital Jakarta, satellite city Bogor, and Banten province; 40 thousand will be distributed to West Java province, Central Java province, East Java province, Yogyakarta Special Region, and Bali province; 10 thousand will be distributed to all provinces outside Java island; and the remaining 10 thousand will be used as backup.

Moreover, I would like to talk about chloroquine. This medicine is produced in Indonesia, by state-owned pharmacy company Kimia Farma. This medicine is not a first line (main) medicine, but the second line since the first line is yet to be found. However, based on other countries’ experience, the choloroquine has positive effect for covid-19 patients. This medicine is not over-the-counter product and needs medical prescription. The Government has prepared three million chloroquine for covid-19 patients.

I also would like to extend my heartfelt condolences to doctors, nurses, and medical workers who passed away. They had shown dedication and struggle to handle the covid-19. On behalf of the Government, the nation, and all people of Indonesia, I would like to express appreciation and gratitude for their dedication to handle covid-19 pandemic.

And on this auspicious occasion, after being discussed on meetings, (I would like to announce that) the Government has decided to provide monthly incentives for health professionals. Medical specialists will be granted Rp15 million, general practitioners will be granted Rp10 million, midwives and nurses will be granted Rp7.5 million, and other health workers will be granted Rp5 million. As for death compensation, the Government will grant Rp300 million. The incentives apply to regions that have declared emergency response.

That concludes my remarks.

Thank you.

Wassalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

Translated by: Estu Widyamurti
Reviewed by: Muhardi