Scavenger irked by broken promise<\/p>\n
Wahyuana, The Jakarta Post\/Bekasi<\/p>\n
With a daily income ranging between Rp 7,000 (US$78 cents) and Rp
\n12,000, Muhammad Nahlan, 48, a Bantar Gebang scavenger, was
\necstatic when told in late March that he had been chosen to
\nreceive a free medical card that will allow him and his family
\nmembers to get free medication in government hospitals.<\/p>\n
Wearing his best clothes, Nahlan, who has four children,
\narrived at the Bantar Gebang district office as ordered on March
\n28, where he was supposed to receive his free card directly from
\nHealth Minister Siti Fadillah.<\/p>\n
Upon arrival at the office, however, Nahlan was told that he
\nhad another task -- giving press interviews about the program and
\nabout his family life.<\/p>\n
\"Of course, I only said good things about the new program during
\nthose first interviews. I also told the press about the poor
\ncircumstances of my family, and that I really hoped that the
\nprogram would help us,\" he told The Jakarta Post recently.<\/p>\n
Now, however, Nahlan, who has benefited from the government's
\nstandard subsidized rice program over the past two years, feels
\nthat he has been cheated.<\/p>\n
\"The ceremony was a big sham. So far, I have not received my
\nmedical card. I really feel I have been cheated,\" he told the Post.<\/p>\n
Royani, a spokesperson for the Sumur Batu subdistrict office,
\nsaid Nahlan was not on the list of program beneficiaries.<\/p>\n
He said that at least 831 of Sumur Batu 5,000 residents were
\nexpected to receive medical cards, but until now only seven had
\nreceived theirs.<\/p>\n
Royani said he was still busy collecting data on the poorest
\nresidents in the subdistrict. He said he had asked for lists of
\nthe poorest families from every community unit head in Sumur
\nBatu. How the office came up with a figure of 831 potential
\nrecipients, however, remains unclear.<\/p>\n
\"Nahlan can contact the head of his community unit if he wants
\nto receive a card,\" Royani added.<\/p>\n
The central government has allocated Rp 3.7 trillion (US$400
\nmillion) on the payment of health insurance premiums for 60
\nmillion poor people across the country as part of a national
\nmedical insurance program.<\/p>\n
Under the program, poor people are given a medical card which
\nthey can use for obtaining medical treatment in government
\nhospitals. Under the previous health program, recipients would
\nonly receive treatment in local health centers.<\/p>\n
The government categorizes people as poor if they earn less
\nthan $1 or less per day, while the United Nations Development
\nProgram sets the benchmark at $2 per day or less.<\/p>\n
Nahlan, who is caring for his sick wife, hoped that he would
\nget his medical card soon. His wife, Tamah bin Antar (40), has
\nbeen sick for the past 18 months. He has twice taken his wife to
\na shaman in Banten, but she has yet to recover. He does not dare
\nto take his wife to hospital as he does not have enough money.<\/p>\n
Also living with him are his four teenage children -- Hamdan 20;
\nAhmad Depi, 17; Ahmad Darwis, 15; and Pona'ah, 12; and his aging
\nmother, Ocih, who has suffered from a face tumor for the past 10
\nyears.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/scavenger-irked-by-broken-promise-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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