160,000 Tangerang toddlers 'sick'

TANGERANG: About 160,000 children under five in Tangerang are malnourished and should be eligible for a supplement offered through local health centers, a local councillor said on Monday.

Councillor Endang Saptorini of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) lamented that the regency's 2005 budget allocated food supplements for only 405 children under five, Antara reported.

"(Malnutrition) is a serious threat to children under five in the regency," said Endang, adding that the number of malnourished children would likely increase during the next few years.

"I appeal to the regent to give special attention to the education and health sectors," Endang said. --JP