Home Affairs Minister requests damage assessment of schools and places of worship in NTT

Home Affairs Minister Muhammad Tito Karnavian has requested local governments to survey damage to schools and places of worship caused by the earthquake in East Nusa Tenggara as a basis for response efforts.

“Mr Regent, please also survey the schools and places of worship, how many primary schools, junior high schools, senior high schools, or early childhood education centres there are. After that, the level of damage: light, moderate, severe. As soon as possible; the sooner the data is collected, the sooner we can act,” Tito said in a statement in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Tito made the remarks after inspecting a collapsed mosque in Satar Kampas Village, North Lamba Leda District, East Manggarai Regency, East Nusa Tenggara, on Monday (17/8).

According to him, surveying the level of damage to educational facilities and places of worship will serve as a reference for relevant ministries in accelerating the response while ensuring the educational and spiritual needs of the community are met.

He cited the post-disaster response to landslides in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra, which resulted in damage to 4,922 schools.

“In Sumatra, 4,922 schools were damaged. Most of them, around 80-90 percent, are already operational again (rehabilitation and reconstruction),” he said.

Tito assured that the central government is paying attention to the continuity of education for students in disaster-affected areas because education is one of the basic needs of the community.

“But the main thing is we have to think about how to keep the teaching and learning process running. The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education already has the equipment: tents, folding chairs, everything needed so it can continue,” Tito said.

After touring and interacting with earthquake survivors at evacuation posts, Tito also visited Abdurrahman Wahid Junior High School in North Lamba Leda District, which suffered severe damage.

At the school, located on the northern coast of East Manggarai Regency, Tito handed over personal assistance directly to the school administrators.