IDNEWSNOW.COM, Jakarta – President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) said the government was committed to prioritizing health issues, claiming it did not matter if the country’s economy drops due to the enforcement of the community activity restriction or PPKM in Java and Bali so long it was in line with the declining number of Covid-19 cases.
“It is actually okay [if the economy drops due to PPKM] as long as the cases also drop. But the fact says otherwise,” he said during an internal meeting at Bogor Presidential Palace on Friday which aired on the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel on Sunday, January 31.
He admitted that the first phase of the social restriction from January 11-25 was ineffective since the people’s mobility remained high which led to a rising number of positive cases in several provinces.
On this basis, Jokowi asked his staffers to thoroughly calculate possible risks from each policy and seek the right regulations to break the chain of virus transmission.
Previously, Bank Indonesia said the first phase of Java-Bali PPKM did not cause a significant impact on economic activity. However, the second phase was predicted to affect public consumption.
Also Read: Jokowi Admits PPKM Social Restriction Ineffective to Curb Covid-19 Transmission
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