Surjadi complains municipal policy misunderstood<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Governor Surjadi Soedirdja complained over the
\nweekend that the administration is often misunderstood and
\nerroneously termed as \"cruel\" by the public for demolishing the
\nmakeshift homes of squatters.<\/p>\n
\"Such misunderstanding arises because municipal officials fail
\nto properly communicate the administration's programs to the
\ncommunity,\" Surjadi said during a visit to Kalideres, West
\nJakarta.<\/p>\n
Surjadi emphasized that it is the duty of city officials to
\nmake the public understand why the squatters have to leave state
\nland.<\/p>\n
The governor was referring to people, most of them homeless
\nmigrants, who illegally occupy state land along the riverbanks
\nand other unoccupied plots of land in the city.<\/p>\n
\"If squatters keep on crowding riverbanks and throw everything
\ninto the rivers, the waterways will become shallower and
\nshallower and eventually become clogged. We have to make the
\ncommunity understand this impact,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Industrial and household waste have been blamed by the
\ngovernment as the main polluters of city rivers.<\/p>\n
In order to clean the capital's rivers, the municipal
\nadministration has launched a bold campaign called Operasi Kali
\nBersih (Operation River Cleanup) with the top priority being the
\nreduction of the environmental impact of the disposal of
\nuntreated industrial waste into waterways.<\/p>\n
Under the program, industries operating in the city have been
\nasked to install waste water treatment plants. Several factories
\ndumping untreated waste into city rivers have been warned and
\nseverely punished.<\/p>\n
The municipal administration, however, has been very careful
\nin tackling the problem of household waste because it is more
\ncomplicated and involves a great many more people, especially the
\ntens of thousands of squatters living along the riverbanks.<\/p>\n
In a speech during the visit, Surjadi offered migrants from
\nother provinces, especially those who are occupying state-owned
\nland along the capital's riverbanks, several options, including
\ngoing back to their hometowns rather than remaining jobless and
\nwithout proper or permanent housing.<\/p>\n
\"District heads and mayors must therefore be watchful about
\nany attempts by migrants to illegally occupy any piece of land
\nwithin their jurisdiction,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Regulation<\/p>\n
The governor also ordered subdistrict and district heads to
\nstrictly implement the regulation requiring visitors to report to
\nneighborhood chiefs within 24 hours after arrival in the city.<\/p>\n
The governor said subdistrict chiefs must determine the
\npurpose of each and every newcomers' visit to the capital.<\/p>\n
\"Subdistrict heads must know about the purpose of any
\nnewcomer's visit -- are they looking for a job, or have they come
\nto study? If they cannot find one within six months and they have
\nno one to financially support them here, tell them to go back to
\ntheir hometowns,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"This does not mean that we are cruel. To the contrary. We
\njust do not want them to be forced to become homeless people,
\nscavengers, or the like,\" Surjadi said.<\/p>\n
Surjadi underlined the necessity to motivate such visitors to
\nreturn to their hometowns despite the fact they may feel ashamed
\nbecause their families and relatives expected them to be
\nsuccessful in the city. (arf)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/surjadi-complains-municipal-policy-misunderstood-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}