"Some 250 thousand residents have been vaccinated. (The city now has) the highest vaccination rate because it has reached 50 percent of the total number of targeted recipients," Sadikin stated during an observation of a vaccination drive hosted jointly by the Indonesian National Defence Forces (TNI) and the Indonesian Police (Polri) at the Solo City Hall here Saturday.
Sadikin affirmed that as the city with the highest percentage of COVID-19 vaccination, he called to intensify the distribution of vaccines to Solo City to accelerate its vaccination rate to reach a satisfactory level.
Besides the minister, TNI Commander Air Chief Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto, Police Chief General Listyo Sigit Prabowo, Head of the National Board of Disaster Management (BNPB) Army Lieutenant General Ganip Warsito, and Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo also attended the observation.
They lauded the program for supporting efforts to accelerate the COVID-19 vaccination drives for the city's residents.
TNI Commander Air Chief Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto revealed that the military will allocate more vaccines for distribution to the people to speed up the vaccination drives to achieve its target.
"I express my gratitude to Solo’s residents for their enthusiasm and contribution, personally or collectively, to defeat our common invisible enemy, the COVID-19 virus," Tjahjanto emphasized.
Furthermore, the TNI commander emphasized the need to still take personal and collective action to tackle COVID-19 by vaccinating, adhering to health protocols and wearing masks, and conducting self-isolation in case of positive cases.
"Let us make wearing a mask everywhere and (conducting) self-isolation (when we were infected) a culture to defeat COVID-19," he stressed.
Meanwhile, Police Chief General Prabowo stated that the increase in the COVID-19 infection rate necessitated the enforcement of emergency public activity restrictions (PPKM Darurat) to stem the spread of the virus by restricting public movement.
The police chief also sought synergy from various social groups to tackle the spread of COVID-19 and reduce its infection rate. He also invited the public to volunteer as a vaccinator or support force to bolster the current vaccination efforts.
Apart from a visit to the Solo City Hall, the officials also visited Graha Saba Buana in Solo's Sumber Village, the medicine warehouse in Solo's 0735 District Military Command, and the Donohudan Hajj Dormitory in Boyolali to observe a vaccination drive.
