Tito: Presence of central officials in NTT proves the state is present

Home Affairs Minister Muhammad Tito Karnavian said the presence of several central government officials in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) is a form of state presence in accelerating the handling of communities affected by the earthquake.

“The President has assigned a number of ministers, heads of institutions, and deputy ministers to go and be present among the people, to attend the 17 August ceremony to show that the central government is not standing idly by,” Tito said in a statement received in Jakarta on Monday.

The statement was made by Tito after leading the 81st Independence Day ceremony at Natas Lehong Field, East Manggarai Regency, NTT.

Tito’s presence in NTT is a follow-up to President Prabowo Subianto’s directive to government officials to inspect affected areas and accelerate post-earthquake handling.

Tito said he was grateful to be able to commemorate the 81st Independence Day with the people of East Manggarai who were also affected by the earthquake.

“A disaster on one hand provides a bitter experience and suffering for all of our people. The English say ‘every cloud has a silver lining’, every problem has a blessing. At least the blessing is that we can meet here,” he said.

In his address, Tito also invited the public to strengthen nationalism and reflect again on the nation’s struggle to achieve independence.

According to Tito, this protection is also realised through the government’s presence in helping communities facing disasters.

The ceremony was also attended by Head of the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) Mohammad Syafii, East Manggarai Regent Agas Andreas, and members of the East Manggarai Regional Leadership Coordination Forum (Forkopimda).