Saturation point: Getting that sinking feeling once again<\/p>\n
On our way back home during a downpour, my husband suddenly broke
\nthe silence with a chuckle. Curious, I asked him what was so
\nfunny.<\/p>\n
\"(Governor) Sutiyoso will probably have a few nightmares
\ntonight,\" came the reply. \"It'll be impossible for him to enjoy a
\ngood night's sleep when everybody is cursing him as we speak.\"<\/p>\n
In fact, my husband and I were also among those city residents
\nmaking some dark mutterings about the flood control program -- or
\nsorry lack thereof -- that kept us on the road even longer than
\nusual.<\/p>\n
The really annoying thing is that we live in a flood-free area
\nbut once we reach Jakarta on rainy days, we are in the same boat
\nof dealing with flooded streets and traffic deadlock.<\/p>\n
And I am sure that we're not alone in saying a few choice
\nwords about the powers that be.<\/p>\n
The more than 1,000 families in Jakarta forced to leave the
\nwarmth and comfort of their homes are not happy campers. On the
\nstreets, stressed motorists are not paying Sutiyoso any
\ncompliments.<\/p>\n
The governor may also be a bit concerned by the fact that most
\nnewspapers and television news programs ran the floods as their
\nlead stories over the past few days.<\/p>\n
What confounds me is that flood control is still on the back
\nburner of priorities as the city administration doles out money
\nto \"modernize\" its transportation system by introducing the
\nTransJakarta Busway, or beautifies the city with more statues and
\neven herds of deer.<\/p>\n
It seems a case of \"out of sight, out of mind\", for when the
\nfloodwater recedes, the officials conveniently forget about
\nyesterday's devastation.<\/p>\n
Yet flooding's effects are extensive: Schools are closed,
\npeople forced out of their homes and unable to go to work,
\ntraffic is disrupted, roads damaged. The losses every year, both
\nmaterial and in the frustration caused to the public, are huge.<\/p>\n
And it's the same routine year after year.<\/p>\n
It's a given that we will see officials paying the victims a
\nvisit -- distributing donations (mostly instant noodles),
\nchatting with the displaced residents and posing for the media.<\/p>\n
Hello? How about dealing with the real problem. Wait a minute,
\nthe answers are all the same again -- \"everyone must take part in
\ndealing with this flood problem, we (the city administration)
\ncannot do it alone\"; \"we have no money to do it\"; \"it's caused by
\nan uncertain weather phenomenon\" and \"it's due to the people's
\nbad habits in dumping their waste in the rivers\".<\/p>\n
It's the same old excuses.<\/p>\n
We citizens pay taxes every year, for land, on our income,
\ncars, not to mention from dining in restaurants or staying in
\nhotels. Surely some of that money can be funneled to better flood
\ncontrol projects.<\/p>\n
I agree with the governor that protecting the environment is
\neveryone's business, something that can be done at home, like in
\nsaving electricity, water or proper waste disposal, and at work.<\/p>\n
But policymakers play a much greater role in determining the
\nfate of our environment by taking the lead. Unfortunately, they
\nsimply just don't get it.<\/p>\n
Environmental protection efforts suffered another blow this
\nmonth when the Jakarta State Administrative Court ruled in favor
\nof the land reclamation project on Jakarta's northern coast.<\/p>\n
State Minister of the Environment Nabiel Makarim lashed out at
\nthe judicial panel for setting a bad precedent. He expressed his
\nregret at how the environmental impact analysis for the project,
\nwarning of its potential to cause widespread environmental
\ndamage, was annulled by a court decision.<\/p>\n
I guess if our top officials are still in the dark about
\nprotecting the environment, preferring to give the OK to more
\nluxury shopping malls, housing complexes, hotels or business
\ncenters, flooding is here to stay. This year, next year, last
\nyear, the year before ... I guess we are just swept away by other
\nconcerns.<\/p>\n
-- Stevie Emilia<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/saturation-point-getting-that-sinking-feeling-once-again-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }