Jakarta Reviews Formula E Plans in Wake of Covid-19 Outbreak

Jakarta. Jakarta's Formula E organizers are reviewing plans for the race, scheduled to take place on a street circuit in the middle of the capital on June 6 this year, as the Covid-19 outbreak continues to spread in Indonesia.

Less than three months before the race, the organizers are looking into health and safety measures that have to be prepared for the race in the event that the outbreak continues. 

"We're very concerned about the coronavirus outbreak – it's an important consideration for the Jakarta E-Prix," Felicia Idama, the communication and sustainability director of the Jakarta Formula E organizing committee, said in a statement on Saturday.

Felicia said the committee is getting updates from the Jakarta Provincial Health Office on the development of the Covid-19 outbreak.

"We've made ourselves aware of the government policies. We're in communication with the highest level of the Jakarta Provincial Health Office," Felicia said.

The committee is compiling feedback and suggestions on the feasibility of holding the Formula E race during the Covid-19 outbreak, including suggestions that the race should be canceled. 

"We're listening to community concerns and discussing with the FEO [Formula E Operations] what are the best steps to take," Felicia said.

Former Jakarta deputy governor Sandiaga Uno has asked current governor Anies Baswedan to review the plan for the Formula E race in respect to the continuing novel coronavirus outbreak.

According to Sandiaga, the Jakarta government must put the safety of the capital's residents first. 

"We need to monitor the development of the outbreak regularly in the interests of the people. Public safety should be our first consideration," Sandiaga said in Jakarta on Sunday.

The Covid-19 outbreak has already forced the cancellations of the Formula E race in Sanya, China, scheduled to take place on March 21, and Italy's Rome E-Prix on April 4.

On Sunday, the government announced two more people had tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus, bringing the total number of people who have contracted the pneumonia-like disease Covid-19 in Indonesia to six.