Tsarina Maharani, Jakarta – The Anti-Injustice Social Coalition has reported President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to the police criminal investigations directorate for alleged violations of health protocols during a presidential visit to Maumere in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT).
Coalition member Kurnia is of the view that Widodo committed a criminal violation of health protocols because his visit caused a crowd to gather during the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The crowd that gathered during the presidential visit in Maumere, NTT, amid the Covid-19 pandemic or the current PPKM [Enforcement of Restrictions on Public Activities] clearly violated health protocols and is strongly suspected to be a violation of health protocols", said Kurnia on Thursday February 25.
According to Kurnia, Widodo's actions in handing out packages from his car caused a crowd to gather which is the complete opposite of the government's attempts to control the spread of Covid-19.
Kurnia asserted that as has often been said by the government, the people's safety is the highest law. Despite this, the Coalition's report was rejected by the police.
Kurnia admits to being disappointed. "By not issuing a police report on our report, we are questioning whether the principle of equality before the law still exists in this republic", said Kurnia.
Widodo's visit to Maumere on Tuesday February 23 has attracted widespread public criticism because the event resulted in large crowds.
The crowds that gathered in Maumere that were ignored by security personnel as can be seen in video recordings which are now circulating widely on social media.
During the visit the president planned to officiate the opening of the Napun Gete Dam in Sikka regency. Since early morning however, crowds of Sikka residents had gathered along the side of the road to wait for Widodo's arrival.
After leaving the dam when the president passed through Waioti sub-district, he was greeted by a crowd of local people.
Although they had been prohibited from getting close to the president, the determined crowd broke through the security perimeter setup by the presidential security detail and police.
Because his vehicle had been blocked, in the end Widodo showed himself from the top of his car's open sunroof. From the car's roof, Widodo waved in the direction of the crowed turning from left to right.
The people in the crowd clapped nosily, waved their hands and took photographs on their phones. Although they wore masks, the people jostled up against each other.
In the video recording circulating on social media, it can be seen that there was no social distancing. Shortly after this Widodo can be seen throwing souvenirs from the car into the crowd, which once again was greeted with a noisy commotion.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Polri Tolak Laporan soal Kunjungan Jokowi ke NTT yang Picu Kerumunan".]
