Epidemiologist: Extension And Relaxation Of Emergency PPKM Must Be Data-Based

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JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo stated that the Emergency PPKM will be opened in stages if until July 26 there is a decrease in cases. The government, according to him, also heard the voices of the people affected by PPKM.

"Therefore, if the trend of cases continues to decline, then on July 26 2021 the government will open it in stages," Jokowi said at a press conference that was broadcast live on the Presidential Secretariat's YouTube account, Tuesday, July 20.

In response, UI Epidemiologist Pandu Riono questioned the science-based criteria if the Emergency PPKM was relaxed. He assessed that there must be an accurate database to tighten and loosen the activities of residents.

"Who agrees with the easing? Every effort to tighten or loosen there must have clear criteria. Well, this isn't it. There must be criteria, if we want to be science-based and based on accurate data, those are epidemiological criteria, criteria from surveillance," said Pandu, Tuesday, July 20.

In addition to the database, he continued, the trend of decreasing cases to the trend of consistent COVID-19 testing is also important in determining the policy of tightening or easing.

"Are we not looking at the daily, we are looking at the trend, is the trend consistently decreasing significantly? Is the testing trend also going up? If the trend is a declining case but the testing is also going down, so don't believe it. It should (testing) continue to rise, because we are pressing from the positivity rate," he explained.

For example, said Pandu, the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government during the PSBB used criteria for tightening and relaxing residents' activities. At that time there were stages used to loosen the activities of residents.

"We used to develop together with the DKI Regional Government how to loosen PSBB, it should be like that there are criteria, then there is the first stage, what is relaxed, what second stage is relaxed, it must be used. With this PPKM, there are no criteria whatever, suddenly tightened," he explained.

According to Pandu Riono, currently the central government has criteria for relaxing, but they are not being used.

"They also have criteria that actually have to be used, yesterday there were level four, level three, why not use that? That's a big question. Should it be used, why has it started to be relaxed. It's already written, use it. If it is not fulfilled, don't force it. We will find it difficult to handle controlling the pandemic," he said.

According to Pandu, the July 26 date that the President mentioned was a preparation to relax policies, not an extension. "That's preparation for 26 (July). Yes, that's what I read. Not an extension of the Emergency PPKM. The easing of the Emergency PPKM on 26 (July), was prepared for five days," he said.