Ari Kuncoro on Metro TV Special Program, “2 Years of the Jokowi-Ma’ruf Government, Captains in the Midst of a Pandemic Storm”
Nino Eka Putra ~ PR FEB UI
DEPOK – (19/10/2021) From a city, the Covid-19 outbreak spread throughout the world. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the pulse of civilization has almost stopped and triggered a multidimensional crisis. We must limit movement and avoid crowds, the aftermath of which has a negative impact on the economy. Various difficult choices for handling the pandemic have become the daily menu of Indonesian President Joko Widodo, starting from the announcement of the first case in Indonesia, to choosing a model for limiting community activities. Armed with successfully carrying out the people’s mandate for the first 5 years, President Joko Widodo worked hard so that the ark did not sink under the storm of the Covid-19 outbreak.
The second term of President Joko Widodo’s administration takes place in the midst of one of the most difficult times for the Indonesian nation. The pandemic storm came without warning, months after Joko Widodo and Ma’ruf Amin officially led the government. President Jokowi must also spur the bureaucracy to run fast, to implement various pro-people policies.
The health sector and the economy are the keys to surviving the pandemic storm. Health recovers the economy rises. What is the track record of the 2 years of the Jokowi-Ma’ruf government so far? And what are the important notes for the Jokowi-Ma’ruf government until the end of their term of office?
This was discussed with the resource person, the Rector of Universitas Indonesia, Prof. Ari Kuncoro, Ph.D., Johnny G. Plate, Minister of Communication and Information Technology, Erick Thohir, Minister of SOEs, Sandiaga Uno, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Eddy Satriya, Deputy for Micro Business, Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs, Suryopratomo, Ambassador of Indonesia for Singapore, Raden Pardede, Executive Secretary of KPC PEN, and Hermawan Saputra, IAKMI Expert Council, in the Metro TV Special Program with the theme “2 Years of Jokowi-Ma’ruf Government, Master in the Midst of a Pandemic Storm” hosted on Tuesday by Wahyu Wiwoho (19/10/2021).
Professor Ari Kuncoro said the Jokowi-Ma’ruf government took policy steps to mitigate the spread of Covid-19 by limiting people’s mobility.
Currently, the government is implementing the Enforcement of Community Activity Restrictions (PPKM). PPKM is implemented in various regions in Indonesia, especially Jabodetabek, and has undergone easing or decreasing levels even though it continues to be extended. The government will continue to choose and extend PPKM to maintain the informal side, both public demand and production side, so that economic dynamics will continue, although not at a high level. This is done to maintain the stability of the Indonesian economy so as not to experience a recession.
According to Ari, during the Christmas and New Year holidays, implementing PPKM is like a queue theory. That is, it was announced that the daily positive Covid-19 case situation was improving but PPKM was still in effect, only that the content or rules were changed. For example, initially the implementation of PPKM Level 4 was then lowered to Levels 3, 2, to 1 by loosening rules such as being allowed to eat in, opening malls, cinemas, increasing passenger capacity for public transportation, and so on.
“Actually, people are learning from the Covid-19 pandemic by looking at the consumer confidence index. If the daily positive cases of Covid-19 increase, the public’s confidence in transactions will decrease. On the other hand, if the daily positive case decreases, the community will start to be aggressive in making transactions. Conditions like today show that the health sector and the economy are mutually reinforcing each other.” Ari said.
“Policies taken by the government cannot be black and white, but must be of a wide spectrum so that people can learn. Mutual socialization, education, and reminding the public to comply with health protocols so as not to harm themselves or others. At the same time, vaccinations must also be intensified. In addition, with the advancement of social media technology, the public can develop feedback to the government. And the government can use this feedback as the basis for the next policy making efforts. Signals like these are important in working together to overcome the Covid-19 pandemic and make Indonesia an endemic country in the future.” Ari said in closing the session. (hjtp)
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