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.

Read also: Indonesia Aims to Produce Millions of Hazmat Suits

“If you (Dr. Sudarsono) are blaming us because the hospital is at overcapacity then we cannot accept it. We cannot enter there,” said Risma.

“Please stop constantly blaming us. Does it seem like I’m okay with my people dying? We’re still arranging things at 3:00am when a non-Surabaya resident died. We still dealt with that,” added Risma.

Upon realizing that the set of measures taken to mitigate the city’s Covid-19 cases was not appreciated, Risma felt desperate.

“I am an idiot. I am not befitting to be Mayor,” said Risma in tears.

A presidential instruction

During a recent visit to East Java, President Jokowi instructed the relevant parties of the region to control the spike in Covid-19 cases.

Jokowi gave two weeks for the East Java government to mitigate the spread of Covid-19.

In response, East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa has formed a Special Covid-19 Hunter Joint Team to stem the tide of infections in the region.

Read also: East Java Governor Forms Covid-19 Hunter Joint Team to Cut Transmission Rate

The Special Covid-19 Hunter Joint Team aims to improve the coordination, collaboration, and synergy of the Greater Surabaya area.

This encompasses Surabaya, Sidoarjo Regency, and Gresik.

As of June 29, East Java once again recorded the highest number of daily Covid-19 infections with 297 new cases. 

(Editor: Setyo Puji) 

Source: https://regional.kompas.com/read/2020/06/29/16255651/persoalan-covid-19-tak-kunjung-usai-risma-menangis-dan-bersujud-di-hadapan