'Don't leave city on festive holidays'
'Don't leave city on festive holidays'
JAKARTA (JP): Governor Sutiyoso has encouraged Jakartans not
to leave the city for their hometowns during the upcoming festive
period unless willing "to pay a heavy price".
"I'm not only speaking about the cost of tickets.
People also have to risk their safety because there will only
be a limited number of buses available, meaning that they will be
dreadfully overcrowded," Sutiyoso said on Monday.
The governor was referring to the upcoming holidays of
Christmas, New Year, Idul Fitri and the Chinese New Year, where
thousands of people usually leave the city to spend the time with
relatives around the country.
During Idul Fitri -- the Moslem festival to mark the end of
the fasting month of Ramadhan -- almost one-third of Jakarta's
10-million population usually leave the city.
This time, the governor said, Jakartans, particularly those
who rely upon the bus services, should stay in the capital.
The number of buses available this year will be less than
usual because many have been unable to operate due to the high
cost of spare parts since the monetary crisis began.
"It will be very risky to travel long distances in overloaded
buses," he warned.
Furthermore, he pointed out, the security forces will be
unable to safeguard the seasonal exodus like in previous years.
"With the unstable situation in the city, both military and
police personnel will need to be posted in hot spots around the
city," the governor said.
"There will only be a limited number of security personnel
assigned to watch over the crowds leaving the city."
Sutiyoso was unable to state exactly how many buses will be
operating during the holidays and said that his office was still
waiting for a report from the city chapter of the Organization of
Land Transportation Owners.
Early last month, Minister of Communications Giri Suseno
Hadihardjono reportedly said that the number of operational city
and intercity buses had fallen by about 40 percent since the
monetary crisis began.
The number of operational city buses, he said, had dropped
from 104,000 to 50,000, while intercity buses had fallen from
13,000 to 8,000. (ylt)