Jokowi About The COVID-19 Vaccine: Even If He Wants To Be Fast, Don't Let The Scientific Norms Be Secondary

DOK / President Joko Widodo / Photo: Cabinet Secretariat of the Republic of Indonesia

JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) reminded his ministers not to rush in the process of procuring and injecting the COVID-19 vaccine. Because this momentum is getting attention from the public.

Jokowi also emphasized that the vaccines to be given to the public must ensure their safety and effectiveness and must not subordinate scientific principles to health data.

"Safety means that if an injection is taken, it really has to go through a correct clinical trial stage. If not, if there is one problem, it could lead to public distrust of this vaccination effort because I see that the safety aspect of vaccines is the main concern of the community, including experts and researchers. "Jokowi said when opening a limited meeting regarding the plan for procurement and implementation of vaccinations to be held at the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, Monday, October 26.

He emphasized that all stages of procurement and administration of the COVID-19 vaccine must be based on existing scientific principles to prevent the emergence of a perception if the government has been in a hurry in procuring and injecting.

"Be careful not to rush to vaccinate so that scientific principles and health data are secondary. We can't. Don't get the perception that the government is rushing, rushing without following the existing scientific corridors," he said.

Despite asking the government to be careful, however, he still asked his ranks of ministers to move quickly in finding a vaccine for COVID-19. The reason is because all countries are currently competing to find a vaccine to be used against this virus. "Indeed, we want to move quickly, but we are open to careful planning and preparation. Because after I have detailed it, it involves many aspects that we have to prepare, we must prepare carefully," he said.

In addition, the former Governor of DKI Jakarta also asked his assistants in the cabinet to explain openly to the public about who will get priority for the COVID-19 vaccine and why.

"Explain which community groups got priority vaccines earlier. Why they were, it must be explained why they got priority," he said.

Jokowi also requested that regulations be prepared regarding the cost of the COVID-19 vaccine for independent recipients. The cost of this vaccine, he said, must be ensured that it is not too high so that it can be affordable by the public.

"The imposition of the cost of vaccination independently must be carefully calculated and calculated, the rules are prepared from the start and I ask that the price be affordable," he said.

The government previously said that the COVID-19 vaccine could be given in November this year. However, the Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan recently said that the vaccination plan could be delayed because the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) still needed time to issue an emergency use authorization.

"Earlier, the President called me, the plan was for the second week of November, because the goods (the vaccine) were already available. But it could not be because of the second week of November, not because of the goods. The items were ready, but the BPOM could not issue an emergency use authorization. because there are rules or steps that must be obeyed, "he explained in a briefing on the Omnibus Law at the Indonesian National Defense Institute, Friday, which was broadcast via the Indonesian Defense Institute's Youtube channel a few days ago.

Luhut emphasized that President Jokowi did not want to take risks and chose to follow the existing rules.

"He said security was number one. I think the government really respects this rule," he added.

As for the procurement of the COVID-19 vaccine, the Indonesian government had previously agreed to purchase from four pharmaceutical companies overseas, namely Cansino, Sinovac, Sinopharm, and Astrazeneca. Currently, the vaccine produced by the four companies is in the process of its third phase of clinical trials before it can finally be used.