Prabowo calls for education on forest fire dangers down to community level

President Prabowo Subianto has asked the government to strengthen public education to prevent the emergence of fire hotspots amid very dry weather conditions in several areas of Kalimantan.

State Secretary Minister (Mensesneg) Prasetyo Hadi, in a statement quoted in Jakarta on Saturday, said education must be carried out continuously down to the lowest levels of society so that activities with the potential to trigger fires can be avoided.

“And lastly, he also gave emphasis to all of us to continuously, tirelessly provide education to our communities down to the lowest level,” Prasetyo said in Palangka Raya on Saturday.

According to Prasetyo, such education is important because very dry weather conditions can cause fires to spread quickly once they break out.

He said the government wants to prevent the public from carrying out activities that could potentially cause fires, especially when environmental conditions are highly flammable.

“Once again, to avoid activities that could cause the potential emergence of fire, which in current conditions would be very dangerous because it could spread and harm us all,” Prasetyo said.

Prasetyo explained that President Prabowo is directly monitoring the handling of forest and land fires by visiting West Kalimantan and Central Kalimantan. In two coordination meetings, the President received reports on the progress of handling efforts as well as needs on the ground.

In addition to prevention through education, the government is also preparing support so that communities do not clear land by burning. One measure is the addition of heavy equipment to help communities open land.

Prasetyo said there are regional regulations that allow land clearing practices in certain ways, but this does not mean land burning is permitted.

Therefore, the meeting also discussed adjustments to regulations so that land clearing is not carried out by burning, while the government will provide equipment support for communities in need.

“If the issue is that our communities need to clear land, then the government will be present in another form by providing assistance, for example the excavators needed to open land,” Prasetyo said.

He added that the President has decided to strengthen or increase heavy equipment to help communities open land without using burning methods.