Jakarta (ANTARA) - Ministers, public figures, officials, artists, traders, teachers, and workers received their first shot of the COVID-19 vaccine at the Merdeka Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Wednesday as the government officially launched its free vaccine program.
President Joko Widodo received the first COVID jab, just 48 hours after the Indonesian food and drug monitoring agency authorized Sinovac’s vaccine for emergency use, based on the results of Phase Three clinical trials in Bandung and other scientific data.
The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has also issued a halal fatwa for vaccines used in the immunization program.
A number of representatives from different backgrounds participated in the inaugural COVID-19 vaccination, which was held on the veranda of the Merdeka Palace.
The representatives were Daeng Mohammad Faqih (chairman of PB IDI); Amirsyah Tambunan (secretary-general of MUI as well as representing Muhammadiyah); Ahmad Ngisomudin (chairman of the Advisory Council of Nahdlatul Ulama); Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto (the Indonesian Military Commander); General Pol. Idham Azis (National Police chief); and, Raffi Ahmad (millennial representative).
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Daeng Mohammad Faqih, a graduate of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Brawijaya, is currently chairman of the Indonesian Doctors Association (IDI). He was active in the Indonesian Hospital Agency from 2014-2017 and was part of the Central Quality Control and Cost Control Team and the board of trustees of the Hospital Accreditation Commission.
Amirsyah Tambunan, secretary-general of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), is also listed as deputy chair of the 2015-2020 PP Muhammadiyah Waqf and Department Council. Amirsyah also served as deputy secretary-general of the MUI from 2010 to 2015.
Ahmad Ngisomudin is currently chairman of the Advisory Council of the Nahdlatul Ulama. He is also a lecturer at Raden Intan State Islamic University (UIN Raden Intan Lampung).
The millennial representative, Raffi Ahmad is a well-known public figure.
Several other representatives also got their first vaccine jab in the sessions that followed.
They included Budi Gunadi Sadikin (Minister of Health), Unifah Rosyidi (general chair of PGRI), Ronald Rischard Tapilatu (Association of Churches in Indonesia), Agustinus Heri Wibowo (Indonesian Bishops' Conference), I Nyoman Suarthani (Parisada Hindu Dharma Indonesia), Partono Nyanasuryanadi (Indonesian Buddhist Association), and Peter Lesmana (Indonesian High Council for Confucian Religion).
Penny Kusumastuti Lukito (head of BPOM), Rosan Perkasa Roeslani (chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry), Ade Zubaidah (secretary-general of the Indonesian Midwives Association), Harif Fadhillah (general chairperson of the PPNI), Nur Fauzah (nurse), Lusy Noviani (deputy secretary-general of the Indonesian Pharmacist Association), Agustini Setiyorini (labor representative), and Narti (trader representative) also took part in the program.
In addition, spokesperson for the COVID-19 Handling Task Force, Prof. Wiku Adisasmito, and Dr. Reisa Asmo Subroto participated in the vaccination program.
The government has exercised prudence in implementing the COVID-19 vaccination program. It waited for the BPOM’s emergency-use permit and the MUI’s halal fatwa, besides paying close attention to a number of requirements for vaccine recipients.
There were several potential recipients who, based on their medical conditions, were not administered the COVID-19 vaccine this time. This was done as a precaution to ensure the safety of vaccine recipients.
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