Deputy Governor of Jakarta, Ahmad Riza Patria. (Image via Kompas)

Ahmad Riza Patria: Rp5 million fine for anti-vaxxers

Speaking on Wednesday at the City Hall, the Deputy Governor of Jakarta, Ahmad Riza Patria, warned that people in Jakarta, refusing to be vaccinated for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), will not escape sanction. Patria stated according to the Regional Regulation (Perda) No. 2 of 2020 on COVID-19 Management, they will be fined by as much as Rp5 million.

While he understood that doubt over the COVID-19 vaccine is still looming large, Patria assured that the Jakarta people should not worry as the central and regional governments will be fully responsible for the vaccination. Taking the President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo (Jokowi), the first to be vaccinated on 13 January 2021, Patria assured that these vaccines should not be doubted.

Furthermore, Patria said that the sanction is necessary for the anti-vaxxers. Those who refuse the vaccines are said to endanger themselves and those around them. For those who refuse to be vaccinated and the fine altogether, Patria allows them to file a lawsuit to the Supreme Court against the Perda, which was ratified in Jakarta's DPRD Plenary Meeting on 19 October 2020.

The Perda consists of 11 chapters with 35 articles and regulates specific matters such as the duty of the Jakarta Government in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, plaguing Indonesia since March 2020, economic recovery, and sanctions for those who violate the COVID-19's health protocols. On the 30th article, it is written that those who purposefully refuse medication and vaccination for COVID-19 shall be fined by as much as Rp5 million.

Source: https://bit.ly/3bdWlLh