All of these are because of our hard workJakarta (ANTARA) - President of Indonesia Joko Widodo (Jokowi) drew parallels between the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Dutch style of football play during the Johan Cruijff era, total football.
Jokowi used the term to refer to the totality of the participation of almost all government elements in the efforts in dealing with the pandemic, which he conveyed during the opening of the 2023 National Coordination Meeting of the Regional Heads at the Sentul International Convention Center in Bogor, West Java, Tuesday.
"Ask other countries, was there total handling like we were? We really did in total football that time. We were running back and forth because we want it to be resolved," Jokowi noted in his remarks broadcast live on the official YouTube channel of the Presidential Secretariat.
The president praised all regional heads attending the event for their hard work in handling the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Thank God that we can manage and control the pandemic well. We can also manage the economic stability. We maintain it, so that it is in a very good position. All of these are because of our hard work," Jokowi stated.
The head of state then invited the participants to bear in mind all the difficulties and challenges that had to be faced by all elements of the government at the onset and during the surge of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The president noted that all difficulties, whether in the form of the need to fulfill the requirements for personal protective equipment (PPE), masks, and oxygen cylinders, to the provision of vaccines, were overcome through joint work.
Specifically for vaccination, the president lauded the role of regional heads and even the neighborhood level and also active contributions from the Indonesia Military (TNI) and the Indonesian Police (Polri), who were able to facilitate the administration of 448 million doses of vaccines to Indonesian citizens to this day.
"Giving 448 million injections is not an easy thing, but members of the TNI and Polri involved, governors, regents, mayors, down to the neighborhood level, all of them participated. That is what enables us to resolve the pandemic well," he stated.
The participation of all governmental elements is what Jokowi refers to as his total football in dealing with the pandemic.
It is because like the total football strategy, which is famous due to Johan Cruijff, all players must be able to fill the role of their partners while trying to attack and win the matches.
Handling of the pandemic in Indonesia has been relatively successful, and even the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has acknowledged its success on several occasions.
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Translator: Cindy Frishanti Octavia
Editor: Sri Haryati
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