According to the results of tests announced on Tuesday (Nov 17), 25 employees of the Indonesian Ombudsman, including ombudsman member (commissioner) Mr Ahmad Suadi, are declared positive for COVID-19.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Some 25 employees of the Indonesian Ombudsman subject to Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) swab tests on November 14-15, 2020, tested positive for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), its deputy chief, Lely Pelitasari Soebekty, stated.

"According to the results of tests announced on Tuesday (Nov 17), 25 employees of the Indonesian Ombudsman, including ombudsman member (commissioner) Mr Ahmad Suadi, are declared positive for COVID-19," Soebekty noted during an online press conference here on Wednesday.

The 25 are among the 334 ombudsman employees, who underwent the swab tests, conducted in cooperation with the Technical Center for Environmental Health and Disease Control at the Health Ministry, she remarked.

Soebekty revealed that the 25 ombudsman employees testing positive for COVID-19 are staffers of the ombudsman secretariat general, assistants/investigators, cleanliness workers, and security officers.

"Based on our monitoring, the 25 employees are in good health and not exhibiting symptoms. We are optimistic that this situation would be overcome soon, and they will soon recover, so that they can return to work," she affirmed.

The massive swab tests for all ombudsman employees were conducted after two employees tested positive for the virus on November 5-12, 2020, she stated.

The Indonesian Ombudsman then coordinated with the Jakarta Provincial Health Office, Setiabudi Public Health Service Post (Puskesmas), and Wisma Atlet COVID-19 Emergency Hospital (RSDC) in conducing contact-tracing of employees coming in close contact with COVID-19 patients and treating COVID-19 patients from the Indonesian Ombudsman, she explained.

On Nov 18, the Indonesian Ombudsman again conducted swab tests on 50 personnel, who had not partaken in the earlier swab testing and relatives of ombudsman employees testing positive for COVID-19.

"We impose a work-from-home policy this week in the hopes of breaking the chain of COVID-19 transmission," she added.
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Translator: Zuhdiar Laeis/Suharto
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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