On Dec. 3, the number of single-day COVID-19 cases in Indonesia rose to a record 8,369. The COVID-19 task force said this might have been caused by technical issues due to the inadequate system used to accumulate real-time data. 

In Papua this meant that two weeks worth of cases – 1,755 – were counted as a daily figure. If the glitch was real, then Papua was supposed to have recorded 125 new cases on average per day. 

This major data blunder has once again cast doubt on the reliability of government data on COVID-19 cases. During the pandemic, real-time data is crucial for the government as a benchmark for policy making, thereby helping it decide how to respond best and how to recover. Moreover, data-driven decisions are crucial for enforcing strict containment and social distancing measures, such as large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) in high-risk regions. 

The different standards local governments apply in reporting new cases will lead to an incomplete view of the risks that the disease has brought to local governments and the national government. Some of the new cases were reported a few days late. Other local administrations even reported accumulated cases.

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