President Jokowi to distribute assistance to Cianjur quake victims next week
Jakarta, The Gulf Observer: President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) will distribute assistance to victims of the recent 5.6-magnitude earthquake in West Java’s Cianjur district on Monday (December 5, 2022).
“Insha Allah (God willing), Mr. President will hand over assistance to repair lightly, moderately, and seriously damaged houses that have been verified,” Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy informed in the Presidential Palace compounds in Jakarta.
The first phase of the presidential assistance will target 8 thousand homes, which suffered light, moderate, or serious damage, he said.
Hopefully, the assistance will help lift the spirits of affected residents, he added.
“If the residents directly (receive assistance) from Mr. President, we hope they will no longer feel (dejected over) the disaster. So, they can resume their daily life, particularly in the economic sector soon,” he said.
The government still needs to verify at least 60 thousand damaged houses before they can receive the presidential assistance. The verification will involve representatives from village administrations, institutes of higher learning, and the Public Works and Public Housing Ministry, Effendy informed.
In addition, the government will repair public facilities, particularly school buildings, that have been damaged in the earthquake to allow students to return to school quickly.
On November 21, a 5.6-magnitude earthquake shook Cianjur district at 1:21 p.m. local time. It was centered 10 kilometers southwest of the district at a depth of 10 kilometers with no potential to trigger a tsunami.
According to the National Disaster Mitigation Board (BNPB), as of Tuesday (November 29), the earthquake had claimed 327 lives and displaced 108,720 residents from their homes.
Meanwhile, the search for earthquake victims, which was supposed to end on November 30, was extended till December 3, Cianjur district head Herman Suherman informed.
The decision to extend the search was taken since 12 missing residents were yet to be found.
