Vice President Gibran Reviews Gas Station in Gayo Lues Aceh, Residents Complain about Fuel Scarcity, Queue up to 3 Hours

GAYO LUES - Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka arrived in Gayo Lues Regency, Aceh, and immediately reviewed one of the public fuel filling stations (SPBU) in a series of working visits to flood-affected areas, Wednesday, December 17.

After traveling by air for about an hour from Soewondo Air Force Base, Medan, Gibran landed at Blangkejeren Airport, Gayo Lues Regency.

From the airport, the Vice President continued his agenda by visiting the Raklunung gas station, which was crowded with residents. Monitoring at the location showed queues of two-wheeled and four-wheeled vehicles flowing to the entrance of the gas station.

Gibran took the time to have a dialogue with residents who were queuing to get fuel oil (BBM).

"How long have you been queuing?" asked Gibran to one of the residents, reported by Antara, Wednesday, December 17.

"Three hours, sir," replied the resident.

Hearing the complaint, Gibran asked the residents to be patient while ensuring that the government would make improvements.

"Three hours, wait first, sir. We'll fix it," said Gibran.

The Vice President also held a dialogue with a number of truck drivers who complained about the limited supply of fuel due to the difficulty of access to distribution from South Aceh Regency.

One of the truck drivers, named Hasan, said that the fuel distribution route only relied on one access road with a steep condition.

"Because the road is steep. That's all. The Vice President said, is there no other way? There is none, we said. That's the only access from the outside," said Hasan.

During the visit, Gibran was accompanied by Deputy Minister of SOEs Aminuddin Ma'ruf. The inspection of the gas station is part of efforts to ensure that the distribution of logistics and people's basic needs continue to run in the midst of the impact of the flood disaster.

Flood disasters are known to have hit a number of areas in Aceh, including Aceh Tamiang Regency, Langsa City, East Aceh Regency, North Aceh Regency, Lhokseumawe City, Bireuen Regency, Pidie Jaya Regency, Pidie Regency, Bener Meriah Regency, Gayo Lues Regency, Aceh Singkil Regency, and South Aceh Regency.

This visit was the second time that Gibran had directly visited the flood-affected area. Previously, on December 4, the Vice President reviewed three flood-affected areas, namely Agam Regency in West Sumatra, South Tapanuli in North Sumatra, and Aceh Singkil Regency in Aceh.

The working visit aims to ensure that the distribution channel for disaster victims runs quickly and accurately according to President Prabowo Subianto's instructions. Gibran also emphasized that he would continue to monitor conditions on the ground until the post-disaster recovery process runs optimally.