'Dengue campaign only lip service'

'Dengue campaign only lip service'

Although the current number of casualties of dengue hemorrhagic
fever is lower than last year's, the government has announced an
extraordinary occurrence of dengue fever in 12 provinces affected
by the dengue outbreak, including Jakarta. The Jakarta Post asked
residents for their opinion on the measures taken by the
government to prevent the spread of the mosquito borne disease.

Idham, 37, owns a language and administrative studies center
in Pejaten, South Jakarta. He lives with his wife and three
children in Pancoran, also in South Jakarta:

I've heard that the government has declared Jakarta one of the
areas with an extraordinary occurrence of dengue. But do you see
any activities or even an emergency atmosphere in the capital
showing that we are in a critical situation? I don't.

It is just business as usual. Although I've been told that two
residents outside our housing complex have been treated in
hospital for dengue fever, no one, not even officials from the
subdistrict administration or from the health agency have come to
assist us in preventing an outbreak.

I think the Jakarta administration talks up its efforts to the
media, so that the public thinks everything is under control.
Moreover, the President has called for the issue to be tackled
more seriously in order to prevent more infections.

The media has reported what the government is doing or its
plans, but the government never communicates directly with the
people.

Liesna, 28, works at a beauty parlor in Kebon Jeruk, West
Jakarta. She lives with her parents in Kebayoran Lama, South
Jakarta:

We shouldn't depend on the government to clean up our
neighborhoods. We should take the initiative ourselves and not
wait for officials to tell us what to do.

Maybe I don't know much about dengue, but I do know that it is
transmitted by a mosquito that breeds in clear water, such as our
bath tank.

So, all we have to do is to clean or change the standing water
around our house. That does not sound like such a big deal, and
it's something that everyone can do.

However, without concerted efforts from all of us, our
individual efforts are rendered useless. A mosquito from next
door, for example, could infect someone from my family, even
though we have cleaned up our house. I hope other people pay
attention to this.

--The Jakarta Post