REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Social Affairs Minister Idrus Marham will celebrate Eid al-Adha along with the earthquake victims on Lombok Island, West Nusa Tenggara. Idrus was scheduled to arrive in Lombok on Tuesday.
"God willing, tomorrow morning I will be there to celebrate Lebaran (Eid al-Adha) with the community," Marham said here on Monday.
According to the minister, the move is a form of support and encouragement to community members, affected by the earthquake in Lombok. Regarding the 6.9-magnitude earthquake which again rocked Lombok on Sunday (Aug 19) night, he stated that he had responded quickly by directing the Director General of Social Protection and Social Security Harry Hikmat to Lombok.
He sent his top official to Lombok to directly check the situation and meet the basic needs of the affected people. The minister has ensured that food, medicine, side dishes, and other basic needs would be met.
"I have coordinated with the Bureau of Logistics, which has provided more than 300 tons of rice, to fulfill people's food needs. So far, there have been no problems," he noted.
Likewise, health problems and damaged infrastructure continue to be recovered. Furthermore, the Minister of Social Affairs remarked that in order to deal with the impact of the earthquake in Lombok, the Ministry of Social Affairs had issued a budget of Rp16.5 billion to ensure that the needs of citizens would be met.
Earlier, Public Works and Public Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljono has submitted reports to Vice President Jusuf Kalla on the rehabilitation process in NTB following a series of earthquakes that hit the province over the last one month. He explained that Kalla would visit Lombok on Tuesday to review aid distribution and the rehabilitation process in the aftermath of the quake.
"Mr. Vice President will visit Lombok tomorrow to witness the impact of the earthquakes and to make sure that reconstruction and rehabilitation plans run well," the minister said at the presidential office, Jakarta, on Monday.
Ikuti Whatsapp Channel Republika
