The Covid-19 pandemic propels digital health and education startups forward. Next year’s prospects are even brighter.

Optimism for a recovery appears to be the face of the 2022 economy. Various sectors now have the opportunity to rise and grow after the pandemic slump of over one year. But a danger lurks behind.

Epidemiologist from University of Indonesia, Pandu Riono, criticizes the PPKM Level 3 policy for the Christmas and New Year holidays. He advises the government to focus on tightening travels and public activities instead.

Herman Hery and Ihsan Yunus, two PDI-P politicians, have long been mentioned in connection with the Covid-19 social aid corruption case. There is proof that he was at a Kelapa Gading warehouse.

The alleged sexual harassment case at Riau University is just the tip of the sexual violence iceberg on Indonesian campuses. Will the education minister’s regulation be powerful enough to prevent sexual assaults on campuses?

PCR test requirements for air travelers apparently advantage certain business people. Pandemic control should not be conducted haphazardly.

Cartoon: Yuyun Nurrachman

It is believed that the budget for the distribution of rice from the social affairs ministry through a state-owned enterprise has been manipulated. There have been many irregularities since a partner company was appointed.

An interview with a spokesperson for the national Covid-19 vaccination program, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, about the drastic decrease of the positivity rate of Covid-19 in Indonesia. How does that happen?

The pandemic has made me—and not only me—anxious about space and sensitive to distance. Maybe this is what the pandemic is shaping, slowly but surely: with these months-long rules about ‘keeping distance’, we are getting used to negotiating with space.

The West Sumatra police stop the investigation into alleged corruption of Covid-19 pandemic funds despite clear evidence. This move would only encourage more corruption.

Although it recorded growth of 7.07 percent, our economy has yet to show significant change. Unemployment and the poverty rate are still high.

The government should not remove the death rate data from the list of pandemic indicators. The data disarray originates in the regions.

The pandemic causes millions of Indonesians to cascade into poverty. More are mere inches away from stepping into the same abyss.

Why the government withholds data on Covid-19 deaths.

The number of orphans increases due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Not all of them receive government assistance.

Covid-19 deaths have risen sharply over the last month. The real figures are believed to be much higher than the government data suggests.

Covid-19 cases spike in villages goes on undetected. People suspected to have contracted the virus chose not to take swab tests. Local governments are scrambling to trace them, while residents of customary villages prefer not to rely on the government.

Progress in the development of ‘Red-and-White’ vaccine at Airlangga University and the Eijkman Molecular Biology Institute is accelerating. It can begin production in the first quarter of next year at the soonest.

The wrong approach led to shortages of Covid-19 medicines in the market. Without corrective measures, the problems caused by the pandemic could become even more serious.

Covid-19 drugs are becoming scarce as Indonesia faces its second wave of Covid-19. Pharmaceutical companies reportedly halted distribution after the health ministry set the maximum retail price limits (HET) for Covid medicines. In several areas, traders and pharmacies are hoarding the drugs.

There is no point in chasing economic growth by prioritizing prestigious projects when ultimately, the economy cannot move because it does not have enough vaccine coverage.

There are allegations that central and regional governments are not being honest in the provision of pandemic data for reasons of politics or the status of regions.

President Joko Widodo cancels the plan to allow individuals to pay for vaccinations, but retains the commercial vaccination program for corporations. The health minister must have the courage to say no.

The government aims for a high vaccination rate until August. But the vaccine supply is low.

Cartoon: Yuyun Nurrachman

Solidarity appears sporadically in the midst of an explosion in the numbers of Covid-19 cases. It needs to be supported with examples of cooperation among the elites.

Our national health system failed to stem the spread of the pandemic. Stop politicizing the pandemic and entrust the handling of it to the medical authorities.

Indonesian citizens who returned to the country were said to be positive for Covid-19 when undergoing a quarantine period at hotels. Officers refused independent retesting.

Cartoon: Yuyun Nurrachman

The Supreme Audit Agency uncovered a number of improprieties in the distribution of Covid-19 assistance. The principle of caution has not been applied.

The rapid increase in the number of Covid-19 cases in Indonesia is proof of the weaknesses in the system to control the pandemic. There is a problem of leadership.

Several regions have not yet reached their vaccination targets. Vaccine shipments from overseas are late.

A rise in new Covid-19 positive cases has hospitals overwhelmed. The government was considered as late in banning flights from red zone countries, causing the new delta variant to spread easily.

The government’s plan to use ivermectin as Covid-19 medication sparks controversy. The health ministry will conduct clinical testing on the medicine which is officially used to treat intestinal worms.

The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) uses the excuse of waiting for an audit to reimburse arrears to hotels providing isolation services. One instance of a slew of issues in budget management related to Covid-19 mitigation.

The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) suspends the financing of isolation services for asymptomatic Covid-19 patients as well as the accommodation of health workers. They owe Rp140 billion to hotel networks, which are still reeling from the pandemic.

Yopie Hidayat (Contributor)

The number of coronavirus infections rose again after the Lebaran holiday. We cannot simply hope for improvements to government policy.

The number of Covid-19 cases has gone up in some areas. Many residents in Bangkalan, East Java, refuse to take PCR tests.

The gotong-royong vaccinations will worsen the inequalities in access to vaccines. Free vaccinations must remain the priority.

Cartoon: Yuyun Nurrachman

The number of deaths from Covid-19 in India has soared following a religious celebration. Unfortunate result of populist decisions taken based on electoral interests.

The Covid-19 pandemic in India is getting worse. Lax health protocols skyrockets infection rates. Health facilities are overwhelmed.

In the middle of the pandemic, the government is allowing music concerts and sporting events to be held. This is inconsistent with government’s prohibition for homecoming or mudik in Idul Fitri.

The Research and Innovation Consortium for the Acceleration of Covid-19 Mitigation developed 50 products. Government institutions involved in handling the pandemic are less enthusiastic in adopting these innovations.

The initial policies of the central government were deemed ill-suited. One of them is the hospital on Galang Island, whose planning is considered premature. Coordination between central and local governments in handling the pandemic is not very good.

A year after Covid-19 broke out in Indonesia, cases of infection exceeded 1.4 million and the number of deaths reached 38,000. Indonesia is in 18th position in the world in terms of the number of victims, far surpassing China, the country of origin of the outbreak.

Scores of hospitals sent back hundreds of thousands Covid-19 test kits from the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB). The Finance and Development Supervisory Agency (BPKP) discovered discrepancies of up to hundreds of thousand reagent kits recorded and distributed worth almost Rp40 billion up to September 2020. Meanwhile, the Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), which scrutinized procurement documents up to December 2020, discovered potential losses sustained by the state amounting to almost Rp170 billion. A businessman who enjoyed the largest portion of direct appointment for reagent procurements is a colleague of BNPB Chairman Doni Monardo. This investigation is made possible by a collaboration of Tempo with the Investigative Journalists Club and ICW.

Viruses are wars without borders. There is no space or time that can be completely ordered and stabilized in indices and maps. Contagion and healing go on within traces of differing attitudes towards life, sickness, and death.

A reader takes issue with used medical waste during the pandemic. 

Celebrity participation and threats of prosecution are not effective ways to encourage public participation in the Covid-19 vaccination program. This will only lead to more opposition.

A reader views that the Job Creation Law should have involved a comprehensive study and discussing all clusters.