Had A Car With Arief Budiman, Chairman Of The South Sulawesi KPU Positive For COVID-19

KPU building. (Irfan Meidianto / VOI)

JAKARTA - The Indonesian General Election Commission (KPU) commissioner Viryan Aziz stated that the Chairman of the South Sulawesi KPU, Faisal Amir, was positive for COVID-19 since yesterday. Viryan said that Faisal was in a car with the Chairman of the Indonesian KPU, Arief Budiman, on a working visit to the Indonesian KPU in South Sulawesi.

"We got news that the Chairman of the South Sulawesi KPU was positive for COVID-19. It is possible that this happened because Mas Arief and the Chairman of the South Sulawesi KPU were in one car while in Makassar," Viryan said in a webinar discussion, Saturday, September 19.

Arief was known to have tested positive for COVID-19 during a swab test on September 17. Meanwhile, Faisal's swab test results came out on September 18 and tested positive. However, Viryan did not know who was infected with COVID-19 first.

"Our investigation is about who infected whom. Is it from Pak Arief to Pak Faisal, or Pak Faisal to Pak Arief," he said.

As is known, the Chairman of the Indonesian KPU, Arief Budiman, admitted that he was infected with COVID-19. Arief said, he tested positive for COVID-19 while doing a swab test on the night of September 17.

"On the evening of September 17, we conducted a swab test to be used as a condition for attending a meeting at the Bogor Palace on September 18 with a positive result," said Arief in a short message to journalists, Friday, September 18.

That way, the meeting activities at the Bogor Palace today are represented by other KPU members. Previously, Arief conducted a rapid test with non-reactive results on September 16.

Currently, Arief is undergoing independent isolation for 14 days. Arief admitted that he was positive for COVID-19 without experiencing any symptoms.

"On the 18th in the morning, we have started self-quarantine because there are no symptoms, cough, fever, runny nose or shortness of breath," he said.

Arief asked all parties to pray for him to get well soon. "Please pray from all parties so that health can be given to us all. Hopefully health and safety are always devoted to the Indonesian people," he said.