City Hall moves to help residents, belatedly<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
It was a case of too little, too late, as Jakarta Governor
\nSutiyoso claimed on Wednesday that his administration would take
\nemergency action to alleviate much of the grief from the floods
\nand chaos which had all but paralyzed the capital.<\/p>\n
After weeks of procrastination, the governor declared that
\nvarious measures were being taken to help those affected by the
\nchaos.<\/p>\n
The stopgap measures, which provided little, if any, immediate
\nrelief, in effect were of little comfort to the millions of
\nJakartans who were left stranded in colossal traffic jams or had
\nto helplessly watch their life's possessions being soaked by the
\nrising water.<\/p>\n
As the citywide crisis, which began at dawn, quickly worsened
\ninto a potential national crisis, Sutiyoso hastily rounded up his
\naids and mayors on Wednesday to make a public show that something
\nwas being done.<\/p>\n
\"Actually I should be attending a meeting with regional heads
\nnow, but I've asked for a leave from the Home Affairs Minister so
\nthe Jakarta mayors and I can concentrate on the floods,\" Sutiyoso
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
After chairing an emergency meeting attended by military,
\npolice and civilian officials at his office, Sutiyoso pledged
\nthat help was on the way.<\/p>\n
If Sutiyoso had taken the situation more seriously and taken
\nanticipatory steps maybe some of this could have been prevented,
\nmany residents lamented.<\/p>\n
The severe rain and flood was not unexpected. For weeks
\nofficials had warned of a sudden increase of rain. The Public
\nWorks Agency had warned that the capital was simply unprepared to
\nhandle it.<\/p>\n
But Sutiyoso seemed oblivious to the impending dangers,
\nrepeatedly stressing that floods had long been a problem in
\nJakarta and there was nothing he could do about it.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, the carelessness of many people in taking
\nprecautionary measures may have cost the lives of 14 people.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday Sutiyoso said that residents could \"rest assured
\nthat action was being taken\".<\/p>\n
He said a Flood Monitoring Post, controlled from City Hall,
\nhad been established. This would coordinate with similar agencies
\nand departments in each of the five mayoralties to handle flood-
\nrelated problems.<\/p>\n
He also claimed that those who needed help could also call a
\nhotline for assistance: The main number for greater Jakarta is
\n351-7984, South Jakarta 739-6321, East Jakarta 4870-2443, West
\nJakarta 582-1765, North Jakarta 496-4752 and Central Jakarta 384-
\n3066 or 385-0636.<\/p>\n
However, there was no response when the first two numbers were
\nrepeatedly called by The Jakarta Post on Wednesday night.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso also said that the situation had been upgraded to
\n\"High Alert Status\" for residents living near the main rivers of
\nCiliwung and Pesanggrahan.<\/p>\n
The governor's belated action offered little comfort for those
\nresidents who were already knee deep in water.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso and other officials on Wednesday evening also got a
\nbirdseye view of the chaos as he flew in a helicopter to observe
\nthe damage.<\/p>\n
The governor claimed that health posts would be setup for
\nvictims, and his administration would dip into its reserve fund
\nto help relief operations.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso claimed that around 100 tons of rice had been
\ndistributed to five mayoralties in the capital, adding that his
\nadministration had also received 200 tons of rice donated by the
\ncentral government.<\/p>\n
President Megawati Soekarnoputri instructed Health Minister
\nAchmad Suyudi to closely monitor the situation, warning of the
\npossible spread of disease.<\/p>\n
The president plans to visit a few flood sites on Thursday.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/city-hall-moves-to-help-residents-belatedly-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }