The president said he had calculated that if the lockdown was enforced within two to three weeks, the community would have absolutely no opportunity to earn a living.
The president made the remark during the opening of the National Coordination Meeting (Rakornas) for Transition of the Handling of COVID-19 and National Economic Recovery.
"What if that time we decided to lock down? My calculation was that within two or three weeks, people could not afford it. They would not even have a small chance to make a living. Everything is closed. The government could not provide assistance to the people, then what would happen? The people would riot," Jokowi stated at the AA Maramis Building of the Ministry of Finance complex in Jakarta, Thursday.
The president admitted that the potential for riots due to the pressure of the situation was one of the considerations for him and the government on whether to implement a lockdown for handling the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I meditated for three days about whether we have to lockdown or not," Jokowi said humorously.
The president also noted that in fact, most ministers of the Onward Indonesia Cabinet during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic suggested implementing a lockdown.
President Jokowi understood the outlook based on the pattern of anticipating the COVID-19 pandemic in several other countries.
"When deciding whether to (impose a) lockdown or not, 80 percent of the ministerial meeting (said) 'Sir please lockdown', because all countries did that," Jokowi stated.
Furthermore, the request for a lockdown was also made by members of the House of Representatives (DPR) and political parties.
The president said such pressure, accompanied by the threat of a crisis, could potentially lead to a decision maker make an error in deciding policies.
However, the president lauded that the central to village level of government of Indonesia were implementing effective macro and micro management approaches to address the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The macro and micro management that we were conducting are really effective, and I see that all of us are working because we are pressured by the problems. All of us are working," he stated.
Coordinating Minister for Economy Airlangga Hartarto, Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati, Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin, Coordinating Minister for Politics, Law and Government Mahfud MD, Minister of Industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, Minister of State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN) Erick Thohir, as well as Minister of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) Basuki Hadimuljono were also present at the opening of the National Coordination Meeting (Rakornas) for Transition of the Handling of COVID-19 and National Economic Recovery.
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Translator: Cindy Frishanti Octavia
Editor: Sri Haryati
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