GENERAL NEWS AND HEADLINES 

PDPI asks Health Ministry to disclose vaccination recipient requirements
CNN Indonesia (https://tinyurl.com/yykx87aq); Detik (https://tinyurl.com/yyuv87rx)

The Indonesian Society of Respirology (PDPI) has asked the Health Ministry to disclose the requirements for recipients of the government’s COVID-19 vaccination program.

PDPI chairman Agus Dwi Susanto also asked the Indonesian Medical Association (IDI) to draft guidelines to standardize procedures for administering the vaccines.

On the other hand, Agus also pointed out that mass vaccinations should not be rushed and that vaccine candidates had to first pass clinical trials and be approved by the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM).

The Health Ministry previously said that vaccinations would only be given to those aged between 18 and 59 years because the clinical trials conducted thus far had only tested among those age groups. So far, clinical trials of the three candidate vaccines have not involved a 0-17-year age group or a group over 60 years. However, the ministry gave an assurance that those age groups would still receive vaccinations.

 

NasDem Party lawmaker suggests governors should be appointed by govt
CNN Indonesia (https://tinyurl.com/y2wgvrp3)

NasDem party lawmaker Irma Suryani Chaniago has suggested that governors should be directly elected by the central government.

The suggestion was made during an episode of weekly talk show Mata Najwa concerning the government’s COVID-19 response. Indef economist Enny Sri Hartanti was of the opinion that Indonesia’s COVID-19 response was quick enough but had issues in the execution of policies.

In response, Irma argued that governors themselves were lacking in their COVID-19 response, unable to implement the policies set by the central government. This is reflected, according to Irma, by low regional budget absorption.

“This is a problem. It is why governors should be appointed by the government. Regents and mayors, however, can be directly elected [by the people],” said Irma.

During the same occasion, Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) politician Mardani Ali Sera disagreed with Irma, saying that the Home Ministry could guide local administrations.

“Every regional administration’s budget comes from the Home Ministry. If the ministry disagrees, they can just reallocate it. What Mbak Irma is suggesting is counterproductive to our efforts to strengthen regional autonomy,” Mardani said.

 

No foul play behind AGO building blaze, prosecutor says
The Jakarta Post (https://tinyurl.com/y2anzkwv); Liputan6 (https://tinyurl.com/y2spgnuc)

The junior prosecutor for general crimes at the Attorney General's Office (AGO), Fadil Zumhana, says there is no indication of arson behind the fire that ravaged the main building of the AGO complex in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, in August.

"No [foul play] was detected, [the fire] was caused by negligence," Fadil said following a case screening as part of an investigation into the fire with the National Police's detectives on Wednesday.

Authorities reached the conclusion after examining the evidence, he said without elaborating on the details of the findings.

"The fire was caused by a mistake, it was not intentionally set," Fadil added as quoted by tempo.co.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS NEWS AND HEADLINES 

Entrepreneurs association predicts zero increase to Jakarta’s minimum wage next year
The Jakarta Post (https://tinyurl.com/y63zg55j) 

The Indonesian Indigenous Entrepreneurs Association (Hippi) has predicted that the provincial minimum wage (UMP) for Jakarta will see no increase in 2021 following the economic slowdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Hippi chairman Sarman Simaronjang said this was reasonable, considering many small and medium businesses had closed, employees had been laid off, employers’ cash flow had been affected and public purchasing power had weakened. “The burden on entrepreneurs is already big, so being able to survive the pandemic is already a blessing. If the UMP is raised, it will seriously hit entrepreneurs,” Sarman said.

 

Perry: E-commerce transactions to reach Rp 429t this year
Bisnis Indonesia (https://tinyurl.com/y63pn8dq); CNN Indonesia (https://tinyurl.com/y2xw4ztj) 

Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor Perry Warjiyo has predicted that e-commerce transactions will reach Rp 429 trillion (US$29.17 billion) this year, double the 2019 figure at Rp 205.5 trillion. According to BI data, e-commerce transactions from January to August this year totalled Rp 180 trillion. “During the pandemic, we have observed rapid acceleration in financial digitization, particularly in the retail sector as well as with micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs),” Perry said in a webinar on Wednesday. As of Oct. 16, the number of MSMEs that utilized the Quick Response Indonesia Standard (QRIS) code was more than 5 million.

 

GMF AeroAsia enters industrial gas turbine market to survive COVID-19 pandemic
CNBC Indonesia (https://tinyurl.com/y5v58fmz) 

GMF AeroAsia, the subsidiary of national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia, has confirmed its plan to enter the industrial gas turbine engine market in a fight for survival from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. GMF spokesperson Rian Fajar Isnaeni said the company would simultaneously develop its maintenance, repair, and overhaul services for the aviation as well as non-aviation sectors. “The business development plan for the non-aviation sector is the maintenance and repair of industrial gas turbine engines,” Rian explained. The company targets 10 percent of total revenue to come from the non-aviation sector.

 

INACA supports airport tax exemption policy
Bisnis Indonesia (https://tinyurl.com/y5bk2hd4); Kompas (https://tinyurl.com/y255xe68) 

The Indonesia National Air Carriers Association (INACA) supports the government’s decision to apply an airport tax exemption for 13 airports. INACA chairman Denon Prawiraatmadja said the airport tax exemption would reduce the cost of flying for passengers without burdening airlines. The airport tax exemption policy will be applicable from Oct. 23 until Dec. 31.

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