Anies Baswedan said he will self-isolate at his official residence, but will work and chair meetings virtually. - Reuters
JAKARTA (The Straits Times/ANN): Anies Baswedan, the Jakarta Governor, announced on Tuesday (Dec 1) that he has been infected with the coronavirus.
Anies said in an Instagram video that a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test he took on Monday (Nov 30) showed he was positive for Covid-19, the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
He said: "The result of the test showed I'm positive (for Covid-19). I decided to announce this the first chance (I got) this morning -- as we've always done in tackling the Covid-19 since March -- by communicating the issue as it happens, in a transparent and comprehensive manner.
"We uphold transparency pertaining to policies and it is the same regarding my situation today."
Anies said he will self-isolate at his official residence but will work and chair meetings virtually. He urged those who have interacted with him to self-isolate or take a swab test for the virus.
He also said he had interacted intensively with Deputy Governor Ahmad Riza Patria, who had also contracted the coronavirus from his family members.
The governor has been under fire for visiting vigilante group Islam Defenders Front (FPI) leader Rizieq Shihab on Nov 10, hours after the firebrand cleric returned from his self-exile in Saudi Arabia to be mobbed by thousands in a hero's welcome.
He was also criticised for failing to stop a mass gathering in capital city Jakarta on Nov 14, when thousands of mostly maskless FPI supporters massed together to celebrate the wedding of Rizieq's daughter and commemorate Prophet Muhammad's birthday.
Indonesia remains the worst-hit country in South-east Asia by the pandemic, with more than half a million Covid-19 cases and nearly 17,000 deaths.
A high-risk Covid-19 red zone, Jakarta has imposed a slew of restrictions on social gatherings, known locally as PSBB, limiting them to five people and capping occupancy in restaurants at 50 per cent of their total capacity. - The Straits Times/Asia News Network
Did you find this article insightful?
100% readers found this article insightful
