Makassar Mayor Danny Pomanto Confirms Vaccine Certificate Counterfeit Employees Are Fired

Makassar Mayor M Ramdhan Pomanto (Danny Pomanto)/PHOTO VIA ANTARA

MAKASSAR - Makassar Mayor Moh Ramdhan Pomanto (Danny Pomanto) ensured that contract employees who falsified COVID-19 vaccination certificates would be fired and the legal process continued.

"The perpetrators are contract employees and what has been done is criminal. The case has also been handled by the police," said Danny Pomanto, quoted by Antara, Monday, October 25.

FT and WD were secured by the Makassar Police Criminal Investigation Unit after an investigation was carried out regarding reports of forgery of vaccine certificates.

Danny Pomanto said that he became aware of the falsification of the vaccine certificate after he received reports and data on residents who had received vaccination injections.

"I myself reported it (the police), because during the audit of all vaccinations it was found that there was a Puskesmas, why suddenly the reports of people who had been vaccinated and the vaccines were different and this is a big question mark," he said.

Previously, the Makassar Police Satreskrim arrested two suspected makers of fake COVID-19 vaccine letters.

"We have arrested two perpetrators, the initials FT and WD. The forgery in question started from July-17 September 2021," said Deputy Head of Criminal Investigation at the Makassar Polrestabes AKP Jufri when releasing the case at the Makassar Polrestabes.

He explained the modus operandi used by the perpetrators was to work together to make fake vaccine letters.

FT, male, is tasked with finding residents who do not want to be vaccinated against COVID-19. While the female WD is known to be a nurse who made the vaccine letter.

From his actions, since operating from July to September 17, 2021, as many as 179 residents have been issued with fake vaccine letters. For one vaccine letter, a fee of IDR 50 thousand is charged.

"With this case, we managed to confiscate from the suspect the money from the sale of fake vaccine certificates of Rp. 9 million," said Jufri.

The two suspects are now being held in the Makassar Police detention room to undergo a legal process and have been charged with multiple articles.

Perpetrators are subject to Article 55 paragraph 1 of Law number 6 of 2018 concerning Health Quarantine.

In addition, the perpetrator was charged with Law Number 19 of 2016 concerning Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE), with a penalty of 12 years in prison and a fine of Rp. 15 billion.