I am optimistic of no other members contracting the infection. All should remain consistent in implementing preventive measures as mandated in the health protocolsPekanbaru, Riau (ANTARA) - Four members of Riau's legislative body tested positive for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as confirmed by the results of their recent swab tests, Head of the legislative body's Commission I, Ade Agus Hartanto, stated.
The legislators, only identified by their initials as A, M, NZ, and MA, are currently hospitalized at a local hospital in Pekanbaru, the capital of Riau Province, he notified local journalists here on Tuesday.
"I am optimistic of no other members contracting the infection. All should remain consistent in implementing preventive measures as mandated in the health protocols," he remarked.
Hartanto affirmed that A and M had tested positive for COVID-19 after undertaking an official visit to Jakarta. In close heels to this case, two other legislators also contracted the infection based on the results of their swab tests.
In halting the transmission of COVID-19, the Riau provincial legislative body concurred on temporarily terminating several agendas, including working visits to other provinces, though meetings on the provincial government's budget would continue as usual, he stated.
Coronavirus infections initially arose in the Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of 2019, and since then, spread to more than two other countries across the globe, including Indonesia.
The Indonesian government officially declared the country's first confirmed cases on March 2, 2020.
Early this week, the country recorded 2,880 new cases of COVID-19, thereby bringing the total tally of infections to 196,989, according to the country's Task Force for COVID-19 Response.
With 2,077 people recovering from COVID-19, the total recoveries reached 140,652, while the death toll touched 8,130, with 105 people succumbing to the disease over a 24-hour period.
In the wake of the pandemic, the Indonesian economy contracted 5.32 percent in the second quarter of this year.
In dealing with this pandemic situation, Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) emphasized that the government was chiefly prioritizing public safety to address wide-ranging public health and economic impacts of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic across the nation.
To this end, the government is mandated to have in place extraordinary policies in handling the twin crises, he notified participants of a meeting on auditing the state's finance in response to the COVID-19 pandemic at the State Palace on Tuesday.
"All measures must be taken as quickly as possible, with simple procedures, for the sake of public safety. The people's safety is far superior than the complicated procedures that we make ourselves," he noted.
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Translator: Diana S, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2020
