'We're all responsible for the floods'

The Jakarta flood and disaster mitigation task force recorded the number of flood victims in temporary shelters across the city has reached up to 20,000, and two people died in the flood that has inundated the capital over the past few days. The Jakarta Post asked residents who should be responsible for the recurring floods.

Lita, 27, works for a foreign company in Jakarta. She lives with her family in Kalibata, South Jakarta:

The continuous flooding in Jakarta shows that the government and city administration fail to provide people with better housing.

They both have the authority and funds to relocate people to higher places and to establish a system to prevent flooding from recurring, but the problem lies in the corruptive bureaucracy where particular officials prioritized their personal interests without considering the public's misery.

The government's failure is one thing, however, the lack of public participation and awareness are another cause as to why we can't deal with the floods properly.

If people keep throwing garbage everywhere or building houses along the riverbanks, we will surely experience floods every year.

Hamidah, 43, is a caterer in Senen, Central Jakarta. She lives with her husband and three children in Pondok Gede, East Jakarta:

We never think about the flood until it occurs. We do things in the dry season that can cause flooding when the rainy days come.

I have seen people throw garbage in the gutters or rivers because that is the easiest and the cheapest way to get rid of their garbage. But when it rains, they start to complain and blame others.

I think residents like us, as well as businesspeople, who continue to build malls and buildings and the city administration who is incapable of preventing floods with their policies, are all responsible for the floods. But I believe that we should stop blaming each other and start behaving properly. --The Jakarta Post