TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Presidential office opens integrated information center for coronavirus outbreak
The Executive Office of the President has opened an integrated information center to publish official data on the coronavirus and combat misinformation.
Change Size
People wear protective facemasks while waiting in a boarding area at the Raden Sadjad airport in Ranai in Indonesia’s Natuna regency on Monday. Returnees from Wuhan, mostly students, landed on the remote island of Natuna on Sunday, where they are to be quarantined for 14 days. (Photo by RICKY PRAKOSO/AFP) (AFP/Ricky Prakoso)
T
he Executive Office of the President has opened an integrated information center to publish official data and information regarding the novel coronavirus at its office in the Bina Graha building in the Presidential Palace complex, Central Jakarta.
The office’s undersecretary for political information and communication, Juri Ardiantoro, said on Friday that the information center would provide transparent data on a regular basis to avoid misinformation regarding the outbreak.
“The information center will provide updates on the handling of the 2019-nCov in an integrated system [with input from] ministries, institutions and regional administrations,” Juri said at a press conference in Jakarta on Friday as quoted by news agency Antara.
The latest data regarding the outbreak would be available every day from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., and the center would regularly hold press conferences, Juri went on to say.
He added that updated information on 243 Indonesian citizens quarantined in Natuna, Riau Islands, would be among the information provided by the center.
Read also: Indonesia readies plans for post-quarantine period: Health Ministry
Executive Office of the President undersecretary on human development Abetnego Tarigan expressed hope that the centralized distribution of information regarding the outbreak would avoid any stigmatization of the Wuhan evacuees quarantined in Natuna.
Meanwhile, the office’s undersecretary for politics, law, defense and human rights, Jaleswari Pramodhawardani, said she had met with the Natuna community and local officials during a visit on Thursday.
She added that her team was assuring the local community that the government was actively handling the outbreak and would provide clear information to the public about what was happening there.
“Unfortunately, we did not have direct contact with the evacuees being observed, because that is part of compliance with the WHO protocol,” she said, referring to the World Health Organization.
Jaleswari said Natuna residents had accepted the government’s move to quarantine Wuhan evacuees on the island after receiving clear information from law enforcement authorities and government officials.
The government’s decision to quarantine the evacuees there had previously been met with opposition from residents concerned about the coronavirus spreading in the region.
“The government will always guarantee observation in accordance with health standards and protocols,” she said. (syk)
