Habibie tells governors and regents to alleviate poverty
Habibie tells governors and regents to alleviate poverty
JAKARTA (JP): President B.J. Habibie has requested all
governors, regents and mayors to concentrate on alleviating
poverty in urban areas, coastal areas and "backward villages".
He said in a meeting on Saturday with regional authorities
that the reduced number of poor people, from 79.5 million (39.5
percent of population) to 49.5 million (24.23 percent), provided
the "momentum" to make a success of "family and community
empowerment" by helping those who were less fortunate.
He was referring to the figures announced on Friday by the
Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) for the number of people
living below the poverty line in mid 1998 and at the end of 1998.
However, BPS chairman Sugito Suwito said the number of poor
people had increased since 1996.
Sugito said the urban poor were the hardest hit by the
economic crisis, saying their numbers had increased by 114
percent compared to a growth of 108 percent for rural poor from
1996 to the end of 1998.
Sugito explained that the drastic decrease of 30 million
people living below the poverty line over only six months was due
to a "pessimistic scenario" in mid-1998, as quoted in Kompas
daily.
He said estimates at the time were made during "the very
gloomy macroeconomic and political situation following the
resignation of president Soeharto in May".
At the meeting with the regional officials at the Ministry of
Home Affairs, Minister of Defense and Security/Indonesian
Military Commander Gen. Wiranto asked provincial governors to
curb the flow of rural people to the capital.
"The increasing number of slum areas in the city is quite
prone to crime, and they could be potential threats to security
and stability. Therefore, governors and regents are expected to
improve coordination to curb urbanization," he said.
He acknowledged that the capital may appear promising to many
people in rural areas, but said it could accommodate only a
limited number of newcomers.
"With simple, traditional musical instruments, (newcomers) can
earn at least Rp 5,000 per day on buses, at intersections and
housing complexes," Wiranto said, adding that it was very
difficult for villagers to earn even Rp 1,000 in rural areas.
But the slum areas surrounding many affluent compounds here
pose serious problems for security personnel, he said.
Meanwhile, Minister of Social Services Yustika Baharsyah said
her ministry lacked funds to provide the necessary services and
financial aid for victims of poverty and natural disasters.
She complained that of the latest allocation of Rp 17.9
trillion channeled through the social safety net program (JPS),
her office got only Rp 24 billion, while there was no reports of
leaks of funds from her ministry.(rms/anr)