Soroti Kapal Tenggelam Akibat Cuaca Ekstrem, Komisi V DPR Minta Kemenhub Tak Anggap Remeh Warning BMKG

JAKARTA - Deputy Chairman of Commission V of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Syaiful Huda, highlighted the sinking of the tourist ship KM Putri Sakinah in the waters of Komodo Island which killed the coach of the Valencia women's team, Martin Carerras, along with his three children who were on vacation in Indonesia.

Huda asked the Ministry of Transportation not to take lightly the warning of the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) which had issued a warning long in advance regarding the threat of Cyclone 96S in the Indian Ocean which triggered high waves and strong winds.

Huda regretted the weak supervision of the Ministry of Transportation in the field to the omission of ships that dared to operate in the midst of extreme weather. Even this accident did not only occur in Labuan Bajo, but also in the waters south of Denpasar over the sinking of the Sharandy of The Seas.

"This tragedy should not have happened if the Ministry of Transportation (Kemenhub) and all related stakeholders did not take the warning from BMKG lightly. Warnings about the 96S Cyclone Seed have been intensified since the last few weeks. This is a collective negligence in responding to early detection of disasters," Syaiful Huda told reporters, Tuesday, December 30.

Huda also highlighted the operation of the KM Putri Sakinah, which still departed at night to Padar Island in the middle of sea waves that reached more than two meters. He urged the Ministry of Transportation to conduct a thorough investigation into the procedures for issuing sailing permits (clearance) in extreme weather conditions.

"The Ministry of Transportation must conduct a special investigation. Why can the ship be berthed in the middle of such weather risks? We are talking about the regions of Bali, NTB, and NTT which are the face of Indonesian tourism in the eyes of the international community. The loss of lives of foreign tourists is a heavy blow to the reputation of our tourism security," he said.

The PKB legislator from the West Java District also emphasized that similar tragedies in the midst of meteorological threats should not be repeated. Huda also urged a moratorium on Sailing Permits in the Red Zone.

"The Ministry of Transportation through the Syahbandar must have the courage to make a decision not to issue a Sailing Approval Letter (SPB) for tourist and public transportation ships in areas directly affected by the 96S Cyclone Seed until the condition is declared safe," said the head of the commission dealing with transportation.

Huda also urged all transportation operators to integrate their navigation systems with the BMKG weather monitoring system in real time. He reminded, there should be no more ship captains or airlines operating without monitoring hourly weather developments.

"We also urge firm sanctions, ranging from revocation of operating permits to criminal penalties, for officers or operators who are proven to have violated safety protocols in the midst of extreme weather," he concluded.