What Prevents Terawan from Resigning As the Health Minister?

The Health Minister, Terawan Agus Putranto, keeps under the spotlight as the man most responsible for Indonesia’s COVID-19 crisis. The public pressure demanding him to resign is getting stronger, starting from netizens on social media, mass organizations, and foreign media. One of the most vocal people demanding his resignation on social media is Akhmad Sahal, an academic and administrator of the Nahdlatul Ulama’s (NU) branch in the US. Through his Twitter account @sahal_AS, he believed that the president should replace Terawan with a more capable and competent person. “The current Health Minister is part of the problem, not part of the solution,” Sahal tweeted.

Meanwhile, Jihan Nurlela, a member of the Regional Representative Council (DPD) from Lampung, felt offended by Terawan’s response to 100 doctors’ deaths, saying that about 3,500 interns were ready to replace them. “I feel sad knowing that health workers are getting treatment like warehouse inventory or goods,” she said.

The Muhammadiyah central executive board, through an official letter, also asked President Joko Widodo to take over the COVID-19 pandemic mitigation. Meanwhile, Asia Times called Terawan as “The man most responsible for Indonesia’s COVID crisis” in one of its articles on Tuesday (9/22).