Tito Visits, Sekumur Village Residents Complain About Clean Water and Housing
The head of the Task Force for Accelerating Rehabilitation and Reconstruction (Satgas PRR) following the Sumatra disaster, Tito Karnavian, met with disaster-affected residents in Sekumur Village, Sekerak Subdistrict, Aceh Tamiang Regency, on Saturday (4/4). He made this visit to directly observe field conditions and engage in dialogue with the community.
In the meeting held on mats, around 200 residents conveyed various issues they have faced since the disaster struck at the end of November last year. These ranged from difficulties in accessing clean water to the absence of decent housing.
One resident, Mijah, directly expressed her grievances to Tito about the harsh life post-disaster without clean water and proper accommodation in the area. This was due to the floods that hit at the end of November last year.
“Sir, please, if possible, have a borehole well made as soon as possible. Clean water is very scarce here. Many of our houses have also been lost,” she said in a written statement on Sunday (5/4/2026).
Another survivor, Deri, also hoped that the government would soon provide sanitation facilities and restore the economic conditions of the affected residents.
“We hope that our difficult road access will also be repaired. All recovery programmes for our village, please accelerate them. That is our hope,” Deri stated.
Previously, Mijah and Deri admitted they did not expect their living standards to be restored by the government due to the remote and hard-to-reach location of the village. However, Tito’s arrival turned that doubt into hope.
“We didn’t expect anyone to come, because getting here is difficult and far first. But the Interior Minister really made it here (to Sekumur Village). Alhamdulillah, our conditions can be seen up close,” she added.
Furthermore, Mijah felt relieved to be able to directly convey those aspirations to the Minister of Home Affairs.
“I just told the Minister of Home Affairs (Minister of Home Affairs) directly what we feel and need regarding clean water and permanent housing. I feel relieved, having conveyed it, even though I don’t know when (it will be executed), but at least it’s been said,” Mijah said.
Meanwhile, Tito stated that his team deliberately came directly to Sekumur Village to ensure that the survivors do not endure difficult conditions for too long post-disaster. During his visit on Saturday (4/4), he absorbed the residents’ aspirations regarding the need for borehole wells and the construction of communal permanent housing.
He noted that the majority of residents want communal permanent housing because most live in flood-prone areas due to river overflows.