DPRD Proposes A Form Of Timsus To Overcome Beggars At Sunan Gunungjati Cemetery

CIREBON - The Regional People's Representative Council (DPRD) of Cirebon Regency, West Java, proposed the formation of a special team as a concrete solution to deal with beggar problems in the religious tourism area of the Sunan Gunungjati Tomb.

Chairman of the Cirebon Regency DPRD Sophi Zulfia said this recommendation was made as a follow-up to visitors' concerns about the rise of beggars in the area.

"Recommendations from Commission I need to be followed up with the palace and so on, to discuss concrete steps forward," he said as quoted by ANTARA, Tuesday, July 15.

He stressed that the formation of this team must be based on accurate data, especially the number and category of beggars, in order to draw up comprehensive and targeted steps.

Therefore, his party has held a special meeting to discuss this issue and recommended that the formation of this team be led directly by the Cirebon Regency Secretariat.

"This team will later face the palace, draft the MoU regarding the authority to manage the tomb area, and make a joint commitment declaration for controlling beggars," he said.

The same thing was conveyed by the Deputy Chairperson of the Cirebon Regency DPRD, Raden Hasan Basori, who considered the existence of a special team to be an important solution given the complexity of authority and the sensitivity of the area of the cultural and religious site.

"The recommendation of Commission I is correct. In this matter, a special team is needed," said Hasan.

Meanwhile, the Head of Cirebon District Social Service, Indra Fitriani, admitted that handling beggars on the Sunan Gunungjagi website was not easy because it involved mindset and authority factors from three different agencies.

According to him, the Social Service Agency has empowered 15 productive age beggars through skills training such as sewing, but the results are not optimal because of the entrenched begging culture.

He ensured that training and empowerment programs would continue to be carried out, but cross-sectoral collaboration was needed so that the handling was more comprehensive and sustainable.

"From our data, the number of beggars there is around 100 people. It consists of the elderly, 35 children, and the rest are of productive age," he said.