In Tears and on Her Knees, Mayor Risma Appeals to Doctors at Covid-19 Public Event

KOMPAS.com – A strategic meeting among key players in Surabaya's fight against Covid-19 came to a pause on Monday, June 29 as City Mayor Tri Rismaharini, better known as Risma, burst into tears in the middle of a discussion on hospitals running at overcapacity.

As a city in East Java, Surabaya has recently experienced one of the worst outbreaks of the Covid-19 virus.

Surabaya is listed as a high-risk zone and has garnered serious concerns from the country’s central and regional governments.

Read also: President Jokowi Visits Covid-19 High-Risk Areas in East Java

Despite undertaking a range of measures, the number of new Covid-19 infections in the city have not tipped downwards.

To speed up the management of Covid-19 cases in Surabaya, Risma held a meeting with the Indonesian Medical Association on Monday.

She asked the association for recommendations in handling the coronavirus pandemic.

The event at City Hall started smoothly.

However, the situation changed after the Chairman of the Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Disease Team at Dr. Soetomo General Hospital, Dr. Sudarsono, said his hospital was already running at overcapacity.

Soon after, Risma burst into tears and knelt in front of the doctors present at the meeting.

Read also: Surabaya Mayor Faints during Covid-19 School Committee Meet

Risma said that the overcapacity of Dr. Soetomo General Hospital had been previously addressed.

The hospital, however, was not too receptive to the message the Surabaya administration had conveyed.

It once rejected a shipment of personal protective equipment sent by the Surabaya city administration.

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