COVID-19 Task Force: Vaccines And Masks Are Like Umbrellas When It Rains

JAKARTA - Head of the Covid-19 Handling Task Force, Lt. Gen. Ganip Warsito, said that currently vaccines and masks are analogous to umbrellas when it rains, namely, they cannot stop the rain, but can protect them from rainwater.

Ganip said this is similar to the use of masks and vaccinations during a pandemic, which do not eliminate COVID-19, but are able to protect against exposure and prevent worsening if exposed.

"The use of masks can protect us from exposure to COVID-19, vaccination is also able to prevent worsening if exposed," said Ganip, quoted by Antara, Sunday, September 12.

While conducting a vaccination review at the Aspiration Hall of DR Ahmad Basarah, Karang Ploso, Malang Regency, Sunday, Ganip also reminded that, even though you have been vaccinated, you must still wear a mask.

Ganip said, in terms of handling COVID-19 in the country, there needs to be a change in people's behavior, namely discipline in carrying out health protocols.

Based on vaccination data from the Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) as of Saturday, September 11, the achievement of vaccination in Malang Regency was 23.26 percent and the second dose 11.11 percent.

Meanwhile, for East Java Province, the achievement of the first dose was 36.31 percent and the second dose was 19.85 percent. This record places East Java in 7th position in achieving national-scale vaccination.

During this review, Ganip also provided assistance in the form of 10,000 masks. Previously in the series of the Mask Car Movement, 500 thousand masks were distributed to all levels of society in the Greater Malang area.

This vaccination event is a real form of fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, so it is hoped that this positive momentum will be maintained and used as a transition from a pandemic to an epidemic.