President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, vowed to shift the budget for unnecessary projects to COVID-19. (Image via Bali Express)

Jokowi to shift all project budgets to battle COVID-19

Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Politics, Legal, and Security, Mahfud MD, stated that currently, the Indonesian government is struggling to prevent the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) from going further. Therefore, the government is shifting the budget to handle the pandemic.

One of the most likely budget shifts will be the project construction budget. Writing on the Coordinating Ministry’s official Instagram account, Mahfud confirmed the possibility.

However, regarding the exact amount of the budget, Mahfud did not reveal any numbers. The President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo (Jokowi) said that there were Rp40 trillion of unnecessary project funds that could be used to crank up the people’s consumption to tackle the COVID-19. Therefore, Jokowi ordained his cabinet to postpone all unnecessary meetings both inbound and outbound.

Currently, the pandemic, originating from Wuhan, Hubei Province, Central China, had entered Indonesia since early March. Per Monday, there are 134 positive cases. From the cases, five passed away and eight recovered from the virus.

Speaking in a press conference in Bogor Palace, Jokowi refused to talk about the lockdown. Lockdown announcement is only allowed to be made by the central government, not the regional government.

The former governor of Jakarta said that the most important thing to do now is to prevent the outbreak of the COVID-19. One of the actions is by reducing the mobility of the people and preventing any mass gatherings.

Source: https://bit.ly/2wjM3Ht